Harmonious Flavors
by TheInsaneFluba
Summary: Willy Wonka hasn't seen the girl who introduced him to the piano since he left secondary school. Yet when he releases six golden tickets into the world, she comes back into his world... with her daughter, the sixth ticket winner, this time. WilderWonka/OC, sixth-ticket fic
1. Memories

**Hi all! So I've had this idea for a WilderWonka fic bouncing around in my head for a while now and I finally had the time to work on it! Being a music major is time consuming. I hope you enjoy and remember to review/fav/subscribe. This story is set in 1971, just like the film.**

* * *

 _Willy Wonka had never thought about going to the arts wing of the school. Was he creative? Yes. But that creativity manifested itself in the form of candy-making and ideas for candies he could not yet make. However, since Winton Academy prided itself on the well-roundedness of their students, Willy was obliged to take a music course for at least one term. He chose choir because he figured it would be simple enough to learn how to sing songs rather than pick up an instrument. He walked through the hallways of the music department trying to find the chorus room. The teenage boy paused when the sound of an unnaturally gifted piano player filled his ears. He turned and peered into the practice room that the beauteous sound was coming from. He watched as a blonde girl moved her long, delicate fingers across the black and white keys of the piano._

 _The piece she was playing sounded almost regal, yet complex. He could tell it was definitely classical music, but he didn't know what it was by or what the piece was called. When the girl played the final notes of the piece, she rested her hands and smiled at the music. She looked up and seemed to see Willy in her peripheral vision. She gasped and quickly shut her music folder. "Um... sorry," she stammered. "I-I didn't realize you were there-"_

 _"The fault is mine," Willy said. "I shouldn't have been staring. You play beautifully."_

 _"Oh... um... thank you," she said. "I try my best." She gathered up her folders of music and smoothed her curled blonde hair back behind her ear. She looked up at him and he finally got a glimpse of her grey eyes._

 _"Oh, um, do you know where the chorus room is?" Willy asked. "I'm supposed to have my next class there, and-"_

 _"It's passing period already?" the girl asked in shock. "Damn. I need bring a clock in here. Well, I know where that classroom. In fact, I'm heading there myself."_

 _"A singer and a pianist?" Willy joking asked. The girl blushed and shrugged._

 _"The school wants me to be more than just a pianist, so..." Willy nodded, understanding where she coming from. "Oh, um. I'm Maureen by the way. Maureen Traynor."_

 _"I'm Willy Wonka," he said. Maureen let out a soft smile._

 _"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Willy," she said. "Right, now the chorus room is this way." She grabbed her backpack and slung it over her shoulder. She escorted him down the hall and turned to the left. "Right here." The rest of the class period went quickly. After all, it was only the first day. It was mostly course expectations and reviewing the syllabus. When the bell rang, Willy suddenly thought of something. He pulled a very confused Maureen over to the side. "Yes?" she asked._

 _"That piece you were playing before class, what was it?" Willy asked. She let out a soft smile._

 _"The Marriage of Figaro Overture by Mozart," she said. "His works can be difficult, but they're so beautiful. I guess I'll see you tomorrow. You know where to find me if you get lost again." Willy nodded. The two students said good-bye to one another as they headed to their next classes._

 _Only to discover that they had French, Language Arts, and Literature together as well. Fate was a funny thing._

* * *

 _"No, you want to keep your wrists up," Maureen instructed. "If they're bent like that you're going to get carpal tunnel or something. If you want to keep experimenting with candy without intense wrist pain you'll keep your wrists up."_

 _Willy froze and immediately altered his hand position on the piano. He and Maureen had been friends for nearly a year now. Willy decided that he was going to take a beginner piano course the next term. However, he wanted to get a head start from Maureen. After all, she was the one playing a majority of the piano in chorus now. The choral instructor was nowhere near as good as Maureen on the piano, so he gave her the role of an accompanist rather than a singer. In exchange for these lessons, he allowed Maureen and her older sisters Margaret and Marion to be the official taste-testers for Willy's confectionary experiments._

 _"By the way," Maureen continued. "Marion and I tried those chocolate-raspberry swirls last night."_

 _"How were they?" Willy asked, his blue eyes lighting up._

 _"Needs more chocolate flavor to it," she said. "We could only taste the raspberry part of it." Willy made a mental note of that and nodded. "Now remember, rest your feet flat on the ground, a comfortable distance apart, with the toes pointing straight ahead. Sit with a straight back - your shoulders shouldn't hunch forward, and your spine should be straight. Scoot in until your hands rest on the keys without having to stretch your arms. You should be able to move your feet forward to the pedals and back again without putting any strain on your upper legs." Willy did exactly that. "Right hand thumb on middle C and left hand thumb on G."_

 _"Um..."_

 _"Middle C is that one, the white key to the left of the first of the group of two black keys. G is three white keys down," Maureen said. Willy moved his hands to the proper positioning and looked at the seemingly simple music in front of it. It was only Mary Had a Little Lamb, yet it looked so daunting. After all, Willy had only recently learned how to actually read music. Willy tentatively played the notes associated with the music. It sounded as if a monkey were experimenting with a piano. Maureen bit her lip and let out a faint grimace._

 _"It was horrible, wasn't it?"_

 _"Considering you transposed it down a fourth and didn't change key signature, it was kind of bad," she admitted. "But you got the pitches in the right order so that's something. Try starting the piece with the third finger on the left hand. Remember, it's three two one two three three three for the first line." Willy did as Maureen instructed and this time the music actually started to sound like Mary Had A Little Lamb. Willy let out a smile and continued the rest of the piece. It actually sounded like proper music... well, music for preschoolers but music nonetheless. "Nice! Now that we have a basic piece of music down, we can move on to scales. I'll warn you, they will suck and you will hate me for them. But in the long run, they'll let you be able to play almost anything." Willy nodded, knowing this was going to lead to more hours in the practice room with Maureen._

* * *

 _"Willy! That was the right scale but you completely botched the fingerings!" Willy sighed and glared at Maureen with clear annoyance._

 _"What does it matter?" he asked. "I got the scale right."_

 _"The scale means nothing if you can't play it with the correct fingerings! You can't take shortcuts with this," she snapped. "And the Db scale is a group two scale! It's easy to remember. The group two scales use all the black keys. Right hand is two three one two three four one two and the left is three two one four three two one! The thumbs meet on the white keys! Again with the fingerings."_

 _"I still don't see how it matters if I get the scale right," Willy argued back. Maureen sighed and shook her head._

 _"Okay, then tell me: what would happen if you took a shortcut with candy making?"_

 _"The candy wouldn't be as good, obviously," he said. Maureen arched an eyebrow and swept her arm towards the piano. Willy opened his mouth in understanding and nodded. "I'm sorry. That was ignorant of me."_

 _"Well, we often cannot control our own ignorance," Maureen said. "That's why it's ignorance. And the only cure is knowledge, so learn the scales with the right fingerings. I need to go, I promised I'd meet Jonathan after his track practice." Willy subconsciously tensed his jaw and nodded. Maureen rolled her eyes and sighed. "What?"_

 _"I've told you before and I'll tell you again," Willy said. "I don't trust him."_

 _"Well I do," she said. "I'll see you later." Willy nodded and watched as the blonde girl left the practice room. He sighed, knowing how hard it would be to change Maureen's mind about that snake Jonathan._

* * *

 _Willy and Maureen were lucky enough to be some of the first students in the United Kingdom to take what were known as "A levels." Maureen chose to take A-Level courses in French, Music, English Literature, and Classical Studies. Willy's choices were nearly identical, save for the fact that he chose to take Food Studies instead of Music. When it came time for the A-Level and O-Level examinations, both of them managed to pass the exams easily. After all, the exams_ were _pass/fail. At least, they were when the two took them. The year after they graduated the grading system changed. Both Willy and Maureen gained their high school diplomas and left Winton Academy in the class of 1952._

 _Maureen and Willy were fairly good at keeping contact with each other when they initially left secondary school. Willy opened his first candy shop in Birmingham, where Maureen was studying piano at Birmingham Conservatoire. On weekends where Maureen wasn't busy giving piano lessons or accompanying other music students, she would come down to the shop and the two would eat chocolate and talk about how their lives were going. Her sister Margaret was a much more frequent customer; she often came with her husband Gerald Scattergood and their two young children, Carolyn and Darrell._

 _The last time Willy was ever able to see or speak to Maureen was on the day she became Mrs. Jonathan Abbott. After that day, she became much busier and rarely had time to come by and see him. Willy himself was beginning to get busier by the day with the rising popularity of his candies. He decided to build a factory in a small town in Surrey. After all, his business was booming and he needed to expand in order to make his candy-making dreams become a reality... or some of his realities to become dreams. Eventually, Maureen faded from his memory. Well, mostly faded. He still thought of her on occasion. He would find himself wondering what was going on with her and how she was doing. Yet he was never able to find Maureen Abbott in any address book._

* * *

Willy Wonka sat at a grand piano in the middle of a grand library. His signature brown top-hat rested on the hat-stand he always kept next to the piano. His right hand moved in an arpeggiated pattern as he almost effortlessly played Beethoven's _Moonlight Sonata._ In his head, he could almost hear Maureen saying _one three five, one three five, one three five_... The music flowed easily off his fingertips and filled the large, spacious library. That was part of why he put the piano there; the acoustics were fantastic and the books gave the space more character. As he neared the end of the haunting sonata, he saw one of his Oompa Loompas approaching him out of the corner of his eye. He played the final notes of the Beethoven piece and turned around.

"Yes?" he asked. The Oompa Loompa silently handed Willy the morning paper. "Thank you." The Oompa Loompa bowed and turned around, leaving Willy alone in the library once more. He moved away from the piano, taking the newspaper and his hat with him to a nearby sofa. He sat and read the paper, immediately seeing how his newest idea was taking over a majority of the articles. He let out a smile.

 _WONKAMANIA HITS THE GLOBE; FIVE GOLDEN TICKETS HIDDEN IN WONKA'S CHOCOLATES_

 _Yesterday morning, famed and renowned chocolatier Willy Wonka announced that he would allow six lucky people to enter his mysterious factory. In the millions of Wonka chocolates around the globe lie six golden tickets. The people that find these golden tickets will be allowed to enter the factory and will be given a tour by Mr. Willy Wonka himself. Each will also receive a lifetime supply of chocolate from Wonka's chocolates. We were unable to get in touch with the illusive chocolatier, however, we did receive comments from competitors..._

Willy stopped reading the article at that point. It was of no concern to him what those unoriginal, thieving competitors of his thought of his golden ticket contest. He flipped through the pages of the newspaper idly, not really noticing anything of interest. Suddenly, his eyes landed on a familiar name.

 _The Surrey Philharmonic Orchestra is proud to present Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2 and Bartok's Piano Concerto No. 1 played by world-renowned pianist Dr. Maureen Traynor._

Willy arched an eyebrow and let out a faint smile and a laugh. No wonder he could never find her as Maureen Abbott. She had returned to using her maiden name. Willy didn't know what had happened to Jonathan Abbott, and he frankly didn't care. He pulled out his small little flute and called for an Oompa Loompa. One of his dutiful, orange-faced men seemingly appeared out of nowhere. "Frank, can you get me a ticket for the Surrey Philharmonic concert this weekend? An old friend of mine is the featured pianist." He nodded and left the room as swiftly as he came. Willy folded up the paper and set it on the end table. He'd already wasted enough time in the library; it was time for him to get to work on the Everlasting Gobstopper.


	2. A Night at the Symphony

**Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Next chapter I'll finally write something in Maureen's point of view.  
**

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Willy entered the large, elegant concert hall he took his seat in the dark, secluded box the Oompa Loompas managed to secure for him. No one recognized the secretive chocolatier. How could they? He hadn't left the factory in over six years. He watched as the members of the orchestra filed onto the stage and warmed up. He heard rapid scales and arpeggios. The strings moved their fingers quickly as their bows seemed to float across the strings. The brass players were empty out spit-valves and oiling their valves; save for the trombones, who were greasing their slides. Flutes tweeted their sweet sounds while the clarinets let out their lower, reedier notes. The oboe squawked out it's higher notes. Willy never did like the oboe much. On the stage, a large grand piano was set up in front of the orchestra.

As the orchestra prepared for their concert, Willy looked down and read the brief biography in the program about Maureen. At the top of the page was a picture of her wearing a formal dress and smiling.

 _Maureen Traynor was born in 1934 in the city of Manchester. As the daughter of violinist Mary Traynor and composer Melvin Traynor, she was immersed in music at a very young age. Maureen received her initial training at the Birmingham Conservatoire and studied further at Cambridge University, where she earned her PhD in Music. Maureen primarily plays as the pianist with London Symphony Orchestra and teaches piano at the London College of Music._

 _She has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, he Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Staatskapelle Dresden, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the City of Birmingham Orchestra, the Bavarian Symphony Orchestra, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. She currently resides in Sutton with her daughter, five cats, and her Model D Steinway & Sons grand piano. _

Willy raised an eyebrow at the last sentence. She had a daughter? Interesting. Perhaps she would be lucky enough to find one of the golden tickets. After all, the tickets were out in the world now; only luck could determine who got the tickets now. He turned the page and read the program for the evening's concert.

 _MOZART | Marriage of Figaro Overture_

 _PROKOFIEV | Piano Concerto No. 2  
\- Andantino - Allegretto  
-Scherzo: Vivace  
-Intermezzo: Allegro moderato  
-_ _Finale: Allegro tempestoso_

 _soloist- Dr. Maureen Traynor_

 _INTERMISSION_

 _HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS | Sinfonietta No. 1, B-Flat Major_

 _BARTOK | Piano Concerto No. 1  
-Allegro moderato - Allegro  
-Andante - attacca  
-Allegro molto_

 _soloist- Dr. Maureen Traynor_

After a few minutes, the lights in the concert hall flickered on and off, and the audience began to hush their idle chatter and take their seats. The audience clapped as the concertmaster took the stage. The violinist bowed and then turned to the orchestra. She played the tuning notes and the rest of orchestra tuned to her notes. The concertmaster took her seat. The next person to enter the stage was the conductor. He bowed and took to the podium. The room was silent as he raised his baton. When it moved downwards for the first time, the sixteenth note runs at the beginning of the _Marriage of Figaro Overture_ began. The regal music filled the hall. Willy could see the concentration and intensity on the face of every string and wind player. The entire piece kept the entire hall enraptured, however Willy was far more anxious to hear his former schoolmate play. He finally heard the notes that indicated the final cadence of the piece. The strings ended with a long flourish of the arms. The audience clapped and the conductor bowed. He approached a microphone that had been set up near the grand piano.

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen," he said. "Never bad thing to begin a concert with Mozart. Next you will hear Prokofiev's Piano Concert No. 2, featuring soloist Dr. Maureen Traynor." He motioned to the side of the stage. Willy watched as Maureen entered the stage and stood by the grand piano. Her long, golden silk gown flowed down to the floor, but still left enough space to where Willy could see her similar colored heels. Her blonde hair was pulled up into an elaborate sort of bun that must have taken hours to create. She curtseyed and took her place on the piano bench as the applause began to die down. Willy let out a soft smile, glad the Oompa Loompas got him a seat where he could clearly see her face.

The conductor looked over to Maureen, who nodded her head once as an indication that was ready to play. The conductor lifted his baton and the orchestra behind Maureen prepared to accompany her. The piece started with a quiet, staccato rhythm from the clarinet. Then Maureen began to play. It was a gentle sort of melody and very beautiful. Then the strings came in and the melody Maureen played began to sound more like something one would hear at a haunted circus. The orchestra faded and all that played was Maureen. Willy could almost feel the passion she held for the piano and he could easily see how lost she was in the piece. The piece began to increase in tempo and the notes Maureen played became faster and more complex. She played soft scalar patterns before lowering her hands for a few measures. After all, the orchestra needed their fix.

The feel of the music began to fall into more of a two pattern and Maureen's hands moved back to the piano, where her notes grew in number. Willy could barely see her hands, but he could tell they were moving fast and without hesitation. It was as if this music was breathing through Maureen's hands. The piece slowed down briefly as the clarinets and woodwinds carried the melody. Maureen returned to the original melody that the first movement began with. She took over the stage so quickly that Willy barely even noticed the orchestra had started to rest. Her hands floated effortless up and down the piano as the music climbed from a soft piano to a large, grand forte. The low brass and winds came in and emphasized the loud, intense section and then suddenly hushed. The music returned to the soft, almost haunting melody from the start of the piece. The movement softly ended. The crowd remained silent, as was custom for a multi-movement piece.

Maureen took a breath and nodded once. Her fingers flew across the keys in a consistent sixteenth note pattern with both hands. Yet he could feel no tension in her as she played the intense, rapid notes. The only intensity he saw from her was on her face, as if she were hyper-focused on the unending sixteenth notes. The strings and winds came in on occasion and seemed to be in perfect sync with Maureen. While the orchestra had some rests, however, Maureen had none. For the entire movement, her hands never stopped moving and playing sixteenth notes. It was over as soon as it began.

The third movement began with the lower strings and harsh sounds, almost like a lumbering giant from a fairytale. Clarinets and the double reeds came in with an almost tiptoe sound. Maureen entered immediately after and the music suddenly gained force to it. Her intense scalar runs kept the feel of the music alive. Willy could almost see a young boy tiptoeing around a slumbering giant. The cymbals began to crash as the third movement drew to a close.

The fourth movement began fast and loud, with both Maureen and the orchestra in unison. Soon, they were off-sync. Maureen was playing the familiar intense scalar run while the orchestra came in on the off beats. Maureen went over into a sprint of octave-chords and single notes, jumping manically up and down the keyboard. The music suddenly calm and the orchestra halted, leaving only Maureen, playing soft but dissonant chords. She moved her hands away from the keys as the strings entered with a mezzo-forte melody. A few bars later, she had moved her hands back to the piano and played a wistful theme similar in character to the first movement's piano opening theme. It was a soft, almost haunting melody that kept Willy enraptured. One by one, the sections came back in while Maureen played the lullaby-like theme. He could hear some of the Russian elements in there.

The bassoons carried on the lullaby for a short while, when Maureen suddenly interjected with a repeat of the more intense melody. The tone brightened and the pace quickened as the lullaby faded away and the new theme took over. When Maureen played a line, the orchestra echoed her. Suddenly, a despondent-sounding version of the lullaby theme on bassoon played alone, abruptly cut off by a sharply articulated and very final sounding cadence from the orchestra. But Maureen continued to play, initially starting at the lower register end of the piano. She played almost a post-cadential meditation on the 'bell' chords from the start of the movement. She played a soft, yet dynamic melody that was just as haunting as the one played in the first movement. Eventually her notes sped up and increased in intensity as the patterns became more akin to sixteenth note scalar patterns. The orchestra slowly joined in as Maureen played the rapid notes, playing the lullaby from earlier one once more. A long diminuendo of gliding piano rushes brings the volume to a soft, soft volume. Willy could barely hear Maureen playing the notes anymore.

Then suddenly, a loud, ferocious blast of sound from the orchestra erupted and the piece continued on. Maureen played with a renewed intensity, as if she knew she were in the home stretch of the piece. The orchestra and Maureen exchanged final sounding notes. The piece ended when Maureen's fingers glided up the piano and the orchestra held out the final, resolute notes.

A thunderous applause erupted from the audience as Maureen stood up and took a bow. Willy could see the large smile plastered on her face and the joy lighting up her grey eyes. She exited the stage and the lights came up for the intermission. Willy didn't leave his seat during this time. After all, he didn't feel the need to. The intermission ended in seemingly no time at all. The conductor returned to the stage and the third piece of the concert began.

While Heitor Villa-Lobos's Sinfonietta No. 1 was enjoyable to listen to, it didn't really stand out as far as the pieces he'd listen to went. Perhaps it was because it lacked Maureen's passionate piano playing. Willy mostly spaced-out for the majority of the _Sinfonietta_. By the time his mind returned to the world, Maureen was taking the stage once more. "Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for joining us this evening," the conductor said. "And a special thanks to Dr. Maureen Traynor for being our feature soloist this evening." The audience applauded and Maureen smiled and bow. "We will end this evening's program with _Bartok's Piano Concerto No. 1_. "

Maureen took her place at the piano and waited for the orchestra to get into position. She and the conductor met eyes, and with a single nod, the first movement began. It started with Maureen playing a low-register duet with the timpani; it was hard to tell which was which at times. The low brass joined in, then suddenly there was long blast of brass. The initial theme repeated, Maureen and the timpani and the double basses and the brass... it sounded like something you would hear as the villain of a fantasy film made his grand entrance. The orchestra echoed the melodies Maureen played. The pace picked up and the intensity increased as the piece went on. Maureen's sound began to fight the sound of the orchestra. It would flow together in some spots then resume into the piano vs. orchestra argument. The chords grew dissonant and chaotic, yet there was a gentleness to her sound. The piece crescendoed to its finale, then the orchestra dropped out as Maureen played the final notes of the first movement.

There was a brief silence, then the second movement began. Though it was hard to tell when it began; Maureen's notes were so quiet that one had to strain their ears to hear it. It didn't help that Willy was a bit deaf in one ear either. The notes moved at a walking pace, almost like that grand villain was sneaking about a castle, plotting evil deeds. It went into a dissonant yet gentle section. Willy could imagine the villain watching a princess while she slept, unsuspecting of the evil just outside her door. The theme continued in different variations, though the tempo remained the same. The music slowly faded away.

The third movement began with intense, fast drums. The snare drums echoed the timpani and bass drum as the brass let out loud, bright glissandos. Maureen came in with a loud glissando and played the fast, intense notes. The music felt like a rushed chase scene, the chaotic spikes of sound from the higher voices and the urgency in the tone of the piano. The piece grew more lighthearted while maintaining a slight sense of urgency. The beautiful, chaotic music continued in a crescendo until suddenly every voice dropped out. Maureen started softly, then grew louder and louder while the rest of the orchestra came in during various spots, then suddenly there were loud final notes and it was over.

The audience clapped and cheered as Maureen stood up and bowed before the audience. She walked off the stage while the audience continued to clap. After a few moments, Maureen re-entered the stage and bowed once more. The audience began to give her a standing ovation as they cheer. As Willy stood up, he could see the her grey eyes light up with joy and a large smile plaster itself to her face. As the cheers and claps continued, Willy took the opportunity to take his leave. After all, he couldn't risk getting recognized with all the attention his factory has been getting lately.


	3. Post-Concert Traditions

**Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!  
**

* * *

Maureen closed the door to her dressing room and smiled a large smile. She let out a gentle laugh and walked over to a nearby armchair and sat down. A few seconds later, she heard a knock on the door. She sighed and called out, "Who is it?"

"One Valkyrie, courtesy of Wagner!" the voice of a young girl replied. Maureen smiled and shook her head as she walked to the door. She opened the door and was greeted with a large hug. She looked down and saw the bright smile of her fifteen-year-old daughter. Laurie Traynor thankfully held no traits of her father. "You were amazing tonight, mum!"

"Thank you, Laurie," Maureen said. She pressed a kiss to her daughter's forehead and looked down at her daughter. "Let me just change out of this dress and we'll be ready to go. Can you get the top of the zipper?"

"Sure," Laurie replied. Maureen turned around and Laurie pulled down the zipper on the back of the dress down to where Maureen could reach it. "We're still getting our traditional post-concert Wonka chocolate, right?"

"I'll try to," Maureen replied as she turned around. "He just announced that golden ticket contest. Everyone's going insane over his candy right now."

"Did you expect the contest?" Laurie asked as Maureen went behind a screen.

"I didn't expect it, but I'm not surprised either," Maureen said as she slipped out of her dress. "It seems like a very Willy Wonka thing to do. Then again, I haven't seen him since before you were born."

"Then I'll try and find one of those tickets for you," Laurie replied.

"You would spend countless pounds on chocolate just for me to reconnect with an old friend?"

"Yep!" Laurie chirped. Maureen rolled her eyes and laughed as she put on her casual clothes. She buttoned up her pale blue blouse and tucked it into her navy blue skirt. She walked out from behind the screen carrying the golden gown.

"This is why I love you, Laurie," Maureen said as she hugged her daughter. "Now let's attempt to get our traditional post-concert Wonka bars."

"We have tuna for the kitty-babies at home, right?" Laurie asked. Maureen smiled and laughed. Ever since she could remember, Laurie had referred to their cats as 'kitty-babies.' The habit was slowly appearing in Maureen as well.

"We should," Maureen said. "You're worried they won't get their post-concert treat?"

"Only a little," Laurie replied as she grabbed her jacket. "You almost forgot last time."

"Because we didn't get back home till nearly two in the morning," Maureen said as she took her own jack from the coat rack. "You can forgive me for being more than a little tired. At least we should get back in about an hour or so."

"And I still have time to write that history paper at the last minute," Laurie said. Maureen narrowed her eyes and arched her brow. Laurie smiled sheepishly and giggled. "Love you, mum."

"I know," Maureen said with a sigh. She opened the dressing room door and walked down the corridor, her gold heels clicking as they hit the concrete. As the two made their way through the backstage passageways, various instrumentalists complimented Maureen on her successful performance. Maureen knew several of them from her years at Birmingham, like Reginald Arthur, the tuba player in the Surrey Philharmonic. She remembered accompanying him for every one of his juries, or playing final exam for music majors. She also remembered the many music theory study parties he hosted in his dorm room that involved drinking a lot almost every time.

They made their way out of the building and to Maureen's little blue 1962 Ford Classic Deluxe. She took out her keys and unlocked the doors. Laurie slid into the passenger's seat a little before Maureen slid into the driver's seat. She turned on the radio, already preset to the classical station, and immediately heard the voice of the radio broadcaster. _"This is a daring move by Willy Wonka. Already candy shops across the United Kingdom are beginning to run out of Wonka bars, yet not one Golden ticket has been found."_

"The world's going absolutely mental," Laurie said.

"I know," Maureen replied. "You still want to try and find a ticket?"

"Of course," the teenage girl said with a smile.

 _"But enough about the Wonkamania,"_ the broadcaster continued. _"Next, we have Ravel's Bolero. Ravel had long toyed with the idea of building a composition from a single theme which would grow simply through harmonic and instrumental ingenuity. Bolero's famous theme came to him on holiday in Saint-Jean-de-Luz. He was about to go for a swim when he called a friend over to the piano and, playing the melody with one finger, asked: 'Don't you think that has an insistent quality? I'm going to try to repeat it a number of times without any development, gradually increasing the orchestra as best I can.'_

 _He began work in July. By Ravel's standards the piece was completed quickly, in five months – it had to be ready for Rubinstein to choreograph._ _Bolero was given its first performance at the Paris Opera on November 20, 1928. The premiere was acclaimed by a shouting, stamping, cheering audience in the midst of which a woman was heard screaming: 'Au fou, au fou!' Which translates into, 'the madman! The madman!' When Ravel was told of this, he reportedly replied: 'That lady… she understood.' Enjoy listening to Ravel's most popular work, Bolero."_

"I like listening to the history behind pieces almost as much as I enjoy listening to the piece itself," Laurie said with a wistful smile as the famous snare line for the piece began.

"Then maybe you should consider becoming a music historian," Maureen said.

"That or become a music librarian," she said. "Or a music theorist, or a composer. I know I want to do something in music that isn't performance."

"Why not performance?" Maureen asked. "You were considering performance last week."

"Yeah, but I don't have the confidence for that," Laurie said. "After all, I'd have to worry about filling your shoes."

"No you wouldn't," Maureen replied. "For one, your main instrument is the flute. I can't get a note out on that thing to save my life."

Laurie shrugged and said, "I'm just not interested in pursuing a performance degree. At least with a music history or composition degree I can do something with it should I not get into a major orchestra. No offence, mum, but a performance degree is basically a piece of paper that says you can play."

"I don't deny that at all," Maureen replied. "But I couldn't see myself with any other degree. It drove your father insane."

"You mean my donor," Laurie snorted. Maureen let out a smile and giggled. For as long as she could remember, Laurie had always referred to her biological father as her 'donor.' Jonathan never had much to do at all with Laurie's life. Maureen and Jonathan had divorced shortly before Laurie was born and Maureen given full custody of Laurie. Last she heard, her ex-husband was living in the states with his fourth wife. The arse had the audacity to send her an invitation to the wedding. "So are we going to Uncle Ray's candy shop?"

"Of course," Maureen said with a smile. "We don't go anywhere else for our tradition post-concert Wonka bar." For the rest of the car-ride back to Sutton, they absorbed the music of Ravel's Bolero, followed by another piece that the broadcaster didn't name. Though Laurie and Maureen immediately knew it was Khachaturian's Masquerade Suite. After that piece had played, the broadcaster announced that the next piece to be played was Poulenc's Organ Concerto in G minor.

"Mum, why don't you do organ concertos?" Laurie asked.

"You know why," Maureen said. "Those foot pedals are bloody annoying. I'm used to three, not nine billion."

"Isn't it just two and a half octaves?" Laurie asked.

"Two and a half octaves too many," Maureen snorted. "Besides, the organ is a very different instrument from the piano. They're about as similar as drums are to a clarinet. Though piano does help a little."

"Okay," Laurie said. "Is that why you always refuse to play organ in church?"

"Yep," Maureen said. "No matter how many times I explain that the organ and piano are different, they continue to ask me to play the damn thing." They finally reached familiar territory and Maureen looked for the streets towards her brother-in-law's candy shop. If she was lucky, her sister Marion and her three kids would be there as well. Though she highly doubted it. It was nearly ten at night and the kids were likely in bed. The pulled into the parking lot of the candy shop and Maureen turned off the engine. Laurie was the first to hop out of the car and run into the candy store. Maureen rolled her eyes and laughed as she locked the door. She walked into the candy store, where Laurie had already seated herself onto one of the stools. Behind the counter, her brother-in-law Raymond "Ray" Irving was cleaning a lemonade glass.

"Maurie and Laurie! How's my favorite niece and her mum?" Ray asked with a smile.

"Amazing," Laurie replied. "Mum played amazingly, as usual. She got a pretty long standing ovation tonight. Please tell me you saved us some Wonka bars."

"Of course," Ray replied with a smile. He bent down behind the counter and pulled out three Wonka candies: two classic Wonka bar's and the newest Wonka creation, a Scrumdidilyumptious bar. Maureen still had no idea why Wonka would choose such a long name for a candy. "I figured you two could split his newest creation."

"Thanks, Uncle Ray," Laurie said as she took the chocolates from him. "How much for them? I promised mum I'd pay for them this time."

"As I always say, it's on the house," Ray said. "The least I can do for the two of you. Besides, if I know you, you haven't finished your homework yet. We should all be getting home."

"Is there anything we can do to help close up shop?" Maureen asked. Ray shook his head.

"Nah, I'm just about done. I just need to put these last few glasses up and I'm set to go home," he said. "You two should get going. The cats are probably hungry and Laurie needs to do her homework."

"You know me so well, Uncle Ray." Ray chuckled and grabbed a rag from behind the counter and began to wipe it down. "I'll see you later! Remember, if you need any extra staff around here."

"I know, I know," he said. "I'll give you a ring." Laurie hopped off the stool and handed Maureen her Wonka bar. The pair left the candy shop and hopped into the little blue car. Maureen drove the few minutes from the candy shop to their single-story house. It didn't take long for Maureen to reach her home and park her car in the garage. Laurie jumped out of the car and entered the house through the garage door. Maureen took care of closing the garage and locking the car. She heard a loud laugh from inside and watched as Laurie poked her head out of the door.

"Mum, you have to see this!" she shouted. "The cats are lined up in front of the door!"

"They know the tuna is coming!" Maureen shouted back. She took the gown from the back seat of the car and entered the house. Just as Laurie had said, their five cats were lined up in a neat little row. At the head of the row was the oldest cat and leader of the pack, Cadenza. The longhaired tortoiseshell cat looked up at Maureen with expectant green eyes, making no sound. Next to her was Sonata, who was actually visible for once. The lone black patch around her head was accentuated by her short, white fur. Their long-haired ginger Persian, Madrigal, get out a loud wail and looked up at Maureen with pleading eyes. This was the one that Laurie had nicknamed "fluff bucket." Their white Persian, Aria, sat quietly next to Madrigal and blinked her golden eyes once. Symphony, their youngest Siamese kitten, let out tiny, high pitched squeaks. The kitten was still getting used to the post-concert routine, but knew enough to follow the older cats' leads. "I'll give you guys your tuna when I get the dress put away," Maureen told the anxious cats.

"Don't worry about it, mum," Laurie said. "I've got it. You go relax. Your hands are probably killing you; especially after that Bartok concerto."

"True," Maureen said. "Alright. Make sure you get that history paper done. You need good marks in history if you're considering becoming a music historian."

"I know, mum," Laurie said with a smile. She walked towards the refrigerator mumbling, "Here kitty-babies!" Maureen walked towards her room. The moment she shut the door, she set her performance gown on the dresser and flopped onto her bed. She let out a deep sigh as she closed her eyes. She was always exhausted after a performance; however, playing both Prokofiev and Bartok in the same concert was more tiring than usual. Maureen looked at the Wonka bar in her other hand and smiled. She unwrapped the chocolate bar and broke off a piece of it. She placed the sweet, delicious chocolate on her tongue and savored the taste. Maureen thought of her high school friend as she let the chocolate melt onto her tongue and found herself wondering if she would ever see him again. She doubted it, no matter how much she wished she could call Willy and catch up with him. He had far too much going on at the moment and had become far more secretive in recent years.

After she swallowed the piece of chocolate, she found herself drifting to sleep.


	4. Four Golden Tickets

**Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!  
**

* * *

Maureen sat at the grand piano in what she and Laurie had deemed the music room. It was supposed to be a third bedroom, but the two decided it would be better suited for Maureen's piano and their music library. She was idling playing Minuet No. 1 by Bach as a way to warm up her hands. Today was the first time since her concert that she had decided to actually practice. It turned out she had sprained her right index finger during her last performance. It wasn't the first time such and thing had happened and it certainly wouldn't be the last. The splinted finger clunked against the ivory keys as she played. Even with one bad finger, the music seemed to sing from the piano. Maureen loved warming up with Bach minuets and chorales; he was an absolute master at counterpoint.

Upstairs, Maureen could hear the tweet of Laurie playing the flute. She was probably working on something for either the Solo and Small Ensemble Contest or the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. Based on what she was hearing, it might have even been for her school band. When she heard rapid sixteenth notes she immediately knew that Laurie was working on the overture for the Nutcracker ballet. The National Youth Orchestra was going to be playing for the National Youth Ballet's annual production of the Nutcracker. It was something Laurie had looked forward too since she earned her spot in the NYO. She suddenly heard the doorbell ring and heard the scratching of class as Sonata ran from her hiding spot. Maureen chuckled and rolled her eyes as she stood up. She made her way to the front door. As she did so, she heard the sound of the flute halt and footsteps echo down the hallway.

When Maureen opened the door, she was greeted with the sight of two other teenage girls. "Christina! Judy! You made it!" she heard Laurie shout. Laurie appeared by Maureen's side, flute in hand. Christina Turner and Judy Smith were the other two flautists in the NYO with Laurie. "Mum, can the three of us hijack the music room? We're trying to get the Dance of the Reed Pipes down."

"If I know Maestro Ponti, he's either going to take it ridiculously fast or extremely slow," Judy added, pushing her oversized glasses up her face. "My money is ridiculously fast."

"I don't know," Maureen said. "It depends on how prepared the dancers are. Pit orchestra is a pain."

"I know, right?" Christina replied. "My school's performing The Sound of Music and our lead keeps taking ridiculous liberties. It's so annoying."

"That's vocalists for you," Maureen laughed. "Go ahead and take the music room. I probably shouldn't even be playing." She held up her splinted finger and the two girls winced. "This is Bartok's fault. Or my own fault for playing a Bartok piano concerto."

"I hope it gets better, Ms. Traynor," Judy said. The three girls rushed off to the music room, flutes and music folders in hand. Maureen made her way into the living room and turned on the television. Almost immediately, Madrigal was on her lap and rubbing her head affectionately on Maureen's leg.

" _We began with six Golden Tickets like six lucky bolts of lightning ready to strike without notice at any point on the map_ ," The reporter announced. " _No one knew where, no one knew when the first one would hit. But as you all know, last night we got our answer. The first golden ticket was found in the small town of Duselheim, Germany. We've been waiting several hours for the follow-up story, and we're finally ready with a live report."_ The footage switched over to an anchorman from Germany.

"Laurie! Golden ticket number one has been found!" Maureen shouted. She heard the abrupt halt of flute warm ups and heard the patter of running footsteps. The three teenagers hopped over the couch and sat down, eyes glued to the screen. Madrigal let out a terrified screech and ran away.

 _"Proud we are, for the attention of the_ _entire world focuses today right here in Duselheim, a community suddenly thrust into prominence by the unexpected discovery of the first Wonka Golden Ticket. Its lucky finder is the son of our most prominent parve butcher,"_ Behind the reporter's head was a set of antlers, making it appear as if the German reporter himself had antlers. Laurie and the girls chuckled at that. The camera panned over to a large boy eating at a restaurant with his family. _"_ _The boy's name?_ _Augustus Gloop. Augustus Gloop, the pride of Duselheim, the fame of Western Germany, an example for_ _the whole world. Augustus, how does it make you feel to be the first Golden Ticket finder?"_

 _"Hungry,"_ Augustus replied.

 _"Any other feelings?"_ the reporter asked.

 _"Feel sorry for Wonka,"_ the boy said. _"It's gonna cost him a fortune in fudge."_

"How did I know the first ticket winner would be fat?" Judy asked. Christina and Laurie shrugged.

 _"Mr. Gloop, would you mind saying-"_ the reporter never got a chance to finished that question, however, as Mr. Gloop bit off and ate the end of the microphone. Maureen and the three teenage girls dropped their jaws in shock and exchanged confused glances.

"Did... did he just... _eat_ that?" Laurie asked. Judy and Christina nodded wordlessly and slack-jawed.

 _"Mrs. Gloop, would you care to say words to the television audience?"_

 _"I just knew Augustus would find a Golden Ticket. Eating is his hobby, you know. We encourage him. He wouldn't do it unless he needed the nourishment, would he? Anyway, it's all vitamins..."_ Maureen turned off the television and shook her head.

"I'm so glad your hobby is music and not eating," Maureen said. "Speaking of which, break's over. Get practicing. And go easy on the piccolos; it scares the cats." The girls nodded and ran out of the room. Maureen stood up and headed upstairs to read something. She didn't know what she was going to read yet, but guessing was all part of the fun.

* * *

Almost a month later, Maureen was practicing Rachmanioff's Prelude No. 6 when Laurie burst into the room with a newspaper. "Mum! Mum! The second Golden Ticket's been found!"

"Where?" Maureen asked, continuing to play.

"Buckinghamshire!" Laurie said. "Some rich girl named Veruca Salt."

"I know of the Salt family," Maureen said. "I played at a gala they hosted one. Their daughter is a right brat. She was the one that insisted I live there to play for her amusement."

"Wait, that's the same girl that won a ticket?" Maureen nodded and continued to let her fingers flow across the ivory keys. "I feel bad for Wonka now. He has to deal with that for an entire day. I guess that just means I have to buy more chocolate from Uncle Ray."

"Still bent on getting a Golden Ticket?"

"Of course!" Laurie replied with a large smile. "I need to reconnect you with your long lost high school friend somehow." She bounded out the room and Maureen rolled her eyes, chuckling lightly at her daughter's antics.

* * *

Maureen found out about ticket number three being found when one of her students at the London College of Music came in for a lesson. "Dr. Traynor!" the redheaded Elise du Paraquette said as she came into the large office for her lesson. "I'd thought you'd be interested to know that the third Golden Ticket has been found."

"Oh really?" Maureen asked. "Where was it?"

"In the states," she said. "Miles City, Montana. The girl's a marathon gum-chewer. In the interview she showed off a piece of gum that she'd been chewing for three months straight."

"That's completely disgusting," Maureen said with a grimace. "Are all these ticket winners brats of some sort?"

"Who knows," Elise replied. "Are we staring with that scale test?"

"Of course," Maureen replied. "D flat minor plus arpeggio." The Golden Ticket contest wasn't discussed for the rest of that lesson, nor the lessons after.

* * *

It was now August 31st and Maureen was about to watch the news. When she turned on the television, she was greeted with a broadcast that read, "FOURTH GOLDEN TICKET FOUND." They appeared to be in the southern United States based on the accent of the reporter. They were in the house of a couple and their young son crowded around a television set.

 _"While the rest of the world goes on searching, here in the Southwest it has actually happened. That's what I said, friends. There's only two Golden Tickets left in the entire world because right here in our own community of Marble Falls, Arizona, is lucky winner number four. Now, the name soon to be heard around the universe is Mr. Mike Teevee. Hey, Mike, do you think we might shut that thing off?"_

 _"No, are you crazy?"_ The boy replied snottily. It was then that Laurie had popped into the room and sat down next to her mother while holding an annoyed Cadenza.

 _"He won't answer till the station break,"_ the mother said with a smile. Maureen arched an eyebrow towards Laurie who was staring at the screen in disgusted awe.

"This is why I hate most of my generation," Laurie said.

 _"Mike, the country wants to hear from you, the world is waiting-"_

 _"Can't you shut up? I'm busy!"_ the brat interrupted. He turned to his mother and said, _"Boy, what a great show."_

 _"I serve all his TV dinners right here. He's never even been to the table,"_ the mother said proudly. Laurie and Maureen exchanged shocked expressions and turned back to the screen.

"Why is she saying that like it's a good thing?" Laurie asked. "These parents are almost as bad as the donor!"

 _"You love to watch TV, Mike?"_

 _"You bet."_

 _"What about the Golden Ticket, Mike? That's what we all came to hear-"_ Mike held up a hand and interrupted that thought.

 _"Hold it! I wanna catch this."_

 _"You like the killings, huh?"_

 _"What do you think life's all about?"_

"I don't know... music? Friends? The family that actually matters? Cats?" Laurie shouted. "Anything but staring at some screen 24/7! I mean, I like watching the telly from time to time but this kid is ridiculous!"

 _"Mike, would you tell us-"_ This time the reporter was cut off by Make pulling out a fake gun and clicking it at the reporter. Laurie and Maureen dropped their jaws in shock. Neither of them were fans of guns. The fact that this ten year old had one amazed her. What kind of parents did this kid have?

 _"Wait 'til I get a real one. Colt .45. Pop won't let me have one yet, will you, Pop?"_

 _"Not 'til you're twelve, son,"_ the father replied. Maureen got up and turned off the television, unable to take this interview any longer. It was starting to physically hurt her.

"Laurie," she said as she turned around. "Never get addicted to television. Ever."

"I don't plan on it," Laurie replied as she let go of the cat. "Two left. Let's hope at least one of them isn't a brat or I will officially give up on my generation." The teenager got up and went into her room, presumably to either do homework or practice her instrument. Maureen shared her daughter's hopes that the next Golden Ticket winner would be anything but a brat.

She had no idea that the next Golden Ticket would appear later that week in front of her own eyes.


	5. The Fifth Ticket Found!

**Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!  
**

 **A couple of fun facts concerning this chapter: The concertmaster and conductor I describe were the actual concertmaster and conductor for the London Symphony Orchestra in 1971 (half an hour to find that out). Also, I have sung Carmina Burana with my university's chorus and it was so much fun! Especially O Fortuna. Finally, Der Holle Rache is one of my favorite coloratura arias and I am capable of hitting the highest notes. It's not always in tune, but that can be fixed.**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Maureen sat at the her piano and warmed up her fingers with a few scales. She looked over to her left and exchanged glances with her colleague Suyin Lao. Both of them were playing the piano for the London Symphony Orchestra's performance of Carl Orff's famous _Carmina Burana_. The National Youth Choir as well as the London Symphony Orchestra Chorus and the chorus members at the London School of Music were performing in this event. In fact, her colleagues were the soloists. Dr. Pamela Fagin was the soprano soloist while the brothers Dr. Glenn and Alan Smith were the tenor and baritone soloists, respectively.

She was dressed in her standard concert black dress with black suede heels. Suyin wore a similar style dress, but opted for flats instead of heels. It was a matter of personal preference to piano players. She looked at the chorus members that were slowly making their way onto the stage. She recognized most of the students from the London College of Music. She had either taught them in their Fundamentals of Piano course or accompanied them for various jury pieces. She turned her head to the backstage wing and watch as Laurie took a seat. She gave her mom a thumbs up and took out her program. She was probably looking at the translation of the text. The conductor, André Previn, motioned for the orchestra to wrap up warming up. The stage was silent, then John Georgiadis, the concertmaster of the London Symphony Orchestra, took the stage and the hall filled with applause. He stood and turned to the orchestra and played the tuning note. After everyone had been tuned, he sat down and Maestro Previn took the stage. He turned and bowed before facing the orchestra.

With a great lift of the baton, the chorus began the dramatic opening movement, "O Fortuna." The rest of the concert blurred for Maureen, as it tended to during performances. Maureen always lost herself in the black and white pages of notes. Maureen only realized it was the end of the concert when she heard the second rendition of "O Fortuna." When the chorus sang the final note of the epic piece, the trumpets came in with their strong line. They held out the final note until Maestro Previn cut off the orchestra. The audience roared with applause. Maestro Previn bowed and then motioned for the orchestra to stand. Maureen stood next to Suyin, both of whom were smiling brightly. She looked over into the backstage wing and saw Laurie smiling her big, bright smile and clapping furiously. She pointed Maureen out to a stagehand, most likely praising her mother. The Maestro, soloists, and Concertmaster left the stage, leaving the rest of the orchestra to stand for a few moments more. After the Maestro returned and made his final bows, they were free to go home for the night.

Maureen gathered her sheet music and walked into the wings, where Laurie was waiting. "Everyone sounded amazing!" Laurie said. "I have major flute envy again." Maureen laughed and ruffled Laurie's hair. "Now let's get to Uncle Ray's and get our post-concert Wonka bars!"

"You just want to get out before traffic piles up, don't you?"

"Pretty much," Laurie replied. "It's also usually a forty-five minute drive on a good day."

"You procrastinated homework again, didn't you?" Maureen asked. Laurie grimaced and nodded. "What subject?"

"Maths," Laurie replied. "But it's not as if the homework was going to turn out well anyway, so..."

"Let's just go," Maureen said. They made their way quickly out of the concert hall and towards the car. Maureen hopped in the driver's seat. Since she was wearing a somewhat normal-looking black dress, she didn't feel the need to change into a more casual outfit. Laurie immediately turned on the classical station once Maureen started the car. The music of a Mozart string quartet immediately filled their ears. "Oh right! They're having a Mozart night tonight."

"I nearly forgot!" Laurie said. "Please play something Die Zauberflote, classical station!" After the string quartet ended, a fifteen minute round of commercials began. During this time, Maureen and Laurie talked about the translations for the text of Carmina Burana; particularly _In Taberna Quando Sumus, Olim Lacus Colueram,_ and _Chramer, Gip Die Varwe Mir._

"I mean, _In Taberna_ was basically about everyone getting drunk," Laurie said. "Like, the clergy got drunk, the lords got drunk, the paupers got drunk... everyone gets drunk in the tavern. Then there was _Chramer_... what got me was the line, 'Shopkeeper, give me colour to make my cheeks red, so that I can make the young men love me, against their will.' Like, oh my God. I almost laughed when I read that translation."

"Then there's _Olim,_ which is about a swan that's been cooked and is currently being served on a platter," Maureen said.

"How can a dead bird sing, anyway?" Laurie asked with a laugh. A few minutes later, Laurie's previous wish was granted and the classical station played _Der Holle Rache_ from Mozart's Die Zauberflote. Any time that piece came on, Laurie would try to sing the high notes along with the soprano. She always failed; Laurie had more a mezzo-soprano range and wasn't as capable of reaching those higher notes. When the famous coloratura passage began, Laurie attempted to sing along. When the highest notes arrived, Laurie let out high pitch squawking rather than singing actual notes. She winced and started laughing. "I guess I answered our early question of how a dead bird can sing." Maureen laughed and shook her head.

The song that was playing as they neared Ray's candy shop was Mozart's Marriage of Figaro Overture. "I swear, this piece is stalking me," Maureen murmured as the famous sixteenth note line started. "First the Surrey concert, now this station..."

"Does it mean anything to you?" Laurie asked.

"Yes," Maureen said. "I believe I was playing it the day I first met Willy Wonka. Other than that it holds no significance." They pulled into the parking lot of the candy shop and Laurie got out of the car. It was very near closing time for Ray, so they had decided early on that she would go in, pick up the candy bars, and then the two of them would eat the Wonka bars in the car. A few minutes later, Laurie appeared outside of the candy shop with her uncle. She hugged Uncle Ray good-bye and then ran to the car. She slid into the passenger seat and held out a Wonka bar to Maureen. She took it with a smile and opened up the packaging. She wasn't surprised that there wasn't a Golden Ticket inside; after all, the odds were heavily against her.

She looked at her chocolate as she ate it. She heard a sudden gasp from Laurie and then a muffled squeal. "Mum! Mum! Look!" the teenager squeaked. Maureen looked over at her daughter, who had one hand over her mouth and the other holding a shiny piece of golden foil. Maureen dropped her jaw when she realized what that strip of gold foil was.

Her daughter had just found the fifth Golden Ticket.

"Oh my God!" Maureen shouted. "Laurie, you found it! Oh my God..." the two girls sat in the car and squealed in excitement. They were laughing and exchanging squeals and "oh my God's." "Read it!"

"Greetings to you, the lucky finder of this Golden Ticket, from Mr. Willy Wonka. Present this ticket at the factory gates at ten o'clock in the morning of the first day of October, and do not be late. You may bring with you one member of your own family but no one else. In your wildest dreams you could not imagine the marvelous surprises that await you!" Laurie read. "I can bring you with me, mum!"

"Are you sure?" Maureen asked.

"Who else would I bring? One of the cats?" Laurie asked with an unfaltering smile. "Oh my God! We're going to Willy Wonka's factory!" They squealed and hugged each other. "Oh my God... we need to get home. We'll tell people I found it tomorrow; it's late and I don't want to be up all night answering reporters and I doubt you want to either."

"Yeah," Maureen said. "We need to go home and celebrate. I'll let your maths homework slide."

"Extra tuna for the kitty-babies?" Laurie asked. Maureen put the car into drive and nodded, still unable to stop smiling.

"Extra tuna for the kitty-babies."

* * *

When Laurie came home from school the next day, she was followed by a horde of reporters and cameramen. Maureen dropped her jaw at the sight of all the news vans parked along the side of the street. "Jesus, Laurie... bring enough paparazzi?"

"I told Judy and Christina last night," Laurie said. "When I got out of school they were all lined up. We knew this was going to happen." Camera flashed before Maureen's eyes and she blinked to get the dots out of her vision. One reporter fought his way to their doorstep, where a camera followed him.

"I'm here at the home of Laurie Traynor, winner of the fifth Golden Ticket, right here in Sutton. Laurie is the daughter of the London Symphony Orchestra's very own Maureen Traynor, accomplished pianist," the reporter said, facing the camera. He turned to Laurie and Maureen. "Laurie, how does it feel to be a Golden Ticket winner?"

"Awesome," Laurie said. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I can't wait to see everything with my mum."

"Any other feelings?" another reporter asked.

"Um... excitement? Joy? What kind of answer are you looking for?" Laurie asked.

"How did you find the Golden Ticket?" another asked.

"Well, mum and I were getting our traditional post-concert Wonka bar, and when I opened mine up there was a Golden Ticket inside," Laurie said. "Both of us freaked out. It earned our cats extra tuna."

"Mrs. Traynor, how does it feel to be the proud parent of a Golden Ticket winner?" the first reporter asked.

"It's Dr. Traynor," Maureen corrected. She always hated when people omitted that distinction. "And I'm very happy for Laurie and honored that she wants to take me with her to the factory. I can't wait to spend the day with her and see all the sights."

"How did you celebrate?"

"Well, we were both tired after mum's concert last night," Laurie said. "So all we really did was give the cats extra tuna and then go to sleep. She let me blow off my maths homework, so I guess that's a bonus. Then I couldn't fall asleep because I was so excited so I called my friends Judy and Christina."

"How many cats do you have?" a reporter asked.

"Five," Maureen answered.

"Laurie, what do you like to do in your free time?" another asked.

"Listen to classical music, read, and play the flute," she answered. "I'm sort of following in my mum's footsteps. I can't imagine what I would be doing if she wasn't in my life."

"What about your father?" another asked. Laurie's smile fell and she rolled her eyes.

"My father never has been and never will be part of my life," she snapped. "I have to get my homework done before orchestra rehearsal tonight, so if you excuse us..." Laurie opened the door to their home and Maureen followed her in. She made sure to shut and lock the door after the two entered the house. Flashes from camera shone through the small windows on the front door and the two laughed and looked away. "This is insane! I knew we'd get a lot of media attention but this is just crazy!"

"I'm not even used to this much attention!" Maureen said. "You kept the Golden Ticket up in your room, right?"

"Of course. I'm hiding it in my old flute case. The one with the broken handle," Laurie said. "I won't even tell my friends where it is."

"Just make sure it's not anywhere that the cats could reach it," Maureen said. "The last thing we want is to hand Willy a Golden Ticket coated in cat pee or cat vomit. Cadenza's been having more accidents lately." Laurie nodded and bounced off to her room. Maureen was proud of her daughter and couldn't wait until the first of October.


	6. Hunt for Ticket Number Six

**Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!  
**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Laurie was walking home from school after a long rehearsal for her upcoming school concert. Incantation and Dance was such a fun piece to play. The solo Laurie played at the beginning of the piece was so beautiful. It was low and mysterious, like a hooded figure journeying over a rugged mountain. The rest of it was mostly just the flutes and piccolo (played by Laurie) holding out a sustained, trilled note. She hummed the piece under her breath as she walked from her school to her house. As she walked down the sidewalk, she noticed a man start to follow her. She paused for a moment before picking up her pace. To her displeasure, the man picked up his pace as well. That was when Laurie began to panic. It was enough that a strange man was following her; however, this man just looked creepy and serial-killer like. She gulp and turned around, facing the strange man with a harsh glare. "I know you following me and I demand to know why," she hissed. The man let out a faint smile and nodded his head in a small bow to Laurie.

"Laurie Traynor, I congratulate you on finding the fifth Golden Ticket," the man said. "Let me introduce myself. I am Arthur Slugworth, President of Slugworth Chocolates, Incorporated." Laurie felt her heart stop for a moment when she heard the name. She knew perfectly well that Slugworth was Wonka's biggest rival in the candy world. "Now listen carefully because I'm going to make you very rich indeed. Mr. Wonka is at this moment working on a fantastic invention: the Everlasting Gobstopper. If he succeeds, he'll ruin me. So all I want you to do is to get hold of just one Everlasting Gobstopper and bring it to me so that I can find the secret formula." Laurie tensed her jaw as she felt the hair on the back of her neck bristle in anger. This man actually had the nerve to ask her to _steal_ from Willy Wonka. Even if he wasn't her mother's high school friend, she wouldn't have considered that offer. She had enough in life to keep her happy right now. "Think it over. And don't forget the name: Everlasting Gobstopper."

"I've already thought about it and here's my answer," Laurie said. "Fuck you. And go suck a dick." She turned on her heel and ran off, not wanting to be anywhere near that man. As she ran, she debated whether or not to tell her mother about what had happened. By the time she made it to her house, she had already decided that she wouldn't tell her mom. After all, she had already given an answer and there was really no need to worry about it. If she encountered the Everlasting Gobstopper on the tour, she would simply refuse it. Besides, if it had any trace of strawberry in it she would have to refuse it anyway. She was severely allergic to strawberry and wasn't about to risk anaphylactic shock in order to screw over her mother's friend. She unlocked her front door and entered the house, heading upstairs immediately to practice her flute some more.

* * *

Later that night in Surrey, Willy Wonka sat at his desk answering various letters. He heard the door open and turned his head to see his ever-faithful friend and employee Mr. Wilkinson. "That was fast," Willy said. "Did she give an answer?"

"Yes," Wilkinson replied. Willy arched an eyebrow in surprise. Laurie was the first to do so. None of the other children gave any concrete answer as to whether or not they'd try to procure an Everlasting Gobstopper from 'Slugworth.'

"Well what did she say?" Willy asked with a smile.

"Um... well..." Wilkinson replied. Suddenly, his smile faltered. Had she actually agreed to steal from him? "She said, and I quote, 'Fuck you. And go suck a dick.'" Suddenly Willy dropped his jaw and burst into laughter. He couldn't believe that Laurie had said such a thing to a man that, for all she knew, was the head of a large corporation. "I would like to remind you that she is more a teenager than a child..."

"Maureen raised her right," Willy said between laughs. "So Laurie immediately refused to even bring you the Gobstopper?"

"That is correct," Wilkinson said. "You know her mother?"

"I went to high school with her," Willy said. "We always ended up having our literature and French classes together. She was, and still is, one of the few people I trust. It's been years, though." Willy sighed and shook his head. "I tried to find her, but apparently she's going by her maiden name rather than her married name. Of course her daughter became so much like her... though the swearing is probably more from her classmates. She's definitely the strongest candidate right now. Though we won't know until the final ticket is found. At least we'll have one good child on the tour."

"Should we still prepare a test for her?" Wilkinson asked. Willy paused for a moment and then shook his head.

"From what I've seen of her, she has a good head on her shoulders," Willy replied. "Her deepest passions aren't flaws. In all of the interviews I've seen on the television, she cares only for her mother, her cats, and music. As I said before, Maureen raised her right. Keep an eye out around Surrey; I know I arrange for one ticket to be found locally. It will appear here, I'm sure of it." Mr. Wilkinson nodded and left the room, dutiful as ever. Willy smiled to himself and chuckled again, remembering Laurie's response to the fake offer. He didn't even know if she was going to tell Maureen that 'Slugworth' offered to give her money for stealing the Everlasting Gobstopper. She might and she might not. Willy didn't really know at this point. He only knew that on October 1st, he would be able to see Maureen for the first time in nearly sixteen years. The thought elated him and made him feel less apprehensive about the day. At least two creative, good people would be exploring his factory with him.

* * *

Maureen sat at the couch and watched the news while she waited for a broadcast of the Last Night of the Proms, or the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts. Maureen performed as a soloist two years ago for one of the concerts and had performed with the London Symphony twice this year. Since she didn't have the time to purchase tickets, she was going to watch it on the television with Laurie. Suddenly, the screen cut to breaking news. _"That's it, that's it! It's all over! The Wonka Contest is all over! The sixth and final ticket has been found, and we've got a live report coming in directly now from Paraguay, South America,"_ the newscaster announced. The screen cut to a satellite feed from Paraguay. " _Ladies and Gentlemen, it is finished. The end has come. The sixth and last Golden Ticket has just been found right here in Paraguay. The finder is lucky Alberto Miñoleta, the multimillionaire owner of gambling casinos throughout South America._ _Here is the most recent picture of Alberto the happy finder, the man who has finally put an end to Wonkamania for all the world."_ By now, Laurie had come downstairs and seen the report on the television. She grimaced and let out a disgusted noise.

"Seriously? Another rich person got a ticket?" Laurie asked. She snorted and rolled her eyes. "Who did he buy it off of?" Maureen shrugged and switched the channel to BBC. "Hey. Hey mum. Thirteen days till Wonka!" Maureen rolled her eyes and smiled. Laurie had been counting the days down ever since she got the ticket. The broadcast for the Last Night of Proms began and the two Traynors were immediately swept into a world full of music.

* * *

Maureen was leaving her office at the London School of Music when a student ran up to her with a paper. It was Elise du Paraquette; Maureen could tell from the hair. "Dr. Traynor, you're going to Willy Wonka's factory tomorrow, right?"

"Yes," Maureen asked. "I've already been asked by others, and no I don't think I can bring anything back with me."

"That's not it," Elise said. "Look at the papers!" Maureen took the newspaper from her student and read the headlining article as Elise explained what happened. "That Paraguayan gambler made a fake ticket! There's still one more out there. Can you believe him? Trying to fool the entire world?"

"I can't believe this," Maureen said. "He's a right git."

"I know!" Elise replied. "I'll let you get home, Dr. Traynor. You have a big day tomorrow, after all." Maureen smiled and handed the newspaper back to Elise. Maureen drove home as quickly as she could without breaking any traffic laws. The entire way home, her ears were filled with the works of Shostakovich and Vivaldi. Then, ironically, the Marriage of Figaro Overture played. Maureen rolled her eyes. She was almost fully convinced that that particular piece was stalking her like a crazed ex-boyfriend or something. When she got home, Laurie was running out the front door to greet her.

"Mum, the last ticket was-"

"A fake, I know," Maureen said. "One of my students told me. Such an arse."

"I know!" Laurie shouted. "I mean, I knew something was up when the winner wasn't a kid, but forging a ticket? How low can you get?" She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Oh well. Hopefully winner number six appears sometime today. That would suck if someone found a ticket the day after the tour."

"I know, right?" Maureen said. "Do you have an outfit picked out for tomorrow?"

"Of course," Laurie said. "I'm wearing that one orange cardigan with the yellow dress. You should wear that one dress that makes you look like a hippie. You look good in that dress." Maureen shrugged. She might as well; she had been having trouble deciding what to wear to the factory for the past three days. "Are you doing flats too?"

"If I'm wearing the hippie dress, then I kind of have to wear heels," Maureen said. "The only shoes that go with that is that tan pair. Maybe I could wear that one crochet vest to tie it together?"

"Yes!" Laurie said, her eyes suddenly going huge. "I can't wait for tomorrow! It's going to be absolutely amazing!" She spun around on one foot and squealed, then did a small little dance of excitement. "I seriously can't stop smiling!" She squealed again and jumped up and down. "I'm going to practice. I doubt I'll get a chance to tomorrow."

"Run, little flute," Maureen said with a light laugh. Laurie nodded and ran upstairs. It wasn't long before the twittling of the flute could be heard throughout the entire house.


	7. The Big Day!

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* * *

Maureen and Laurie sat in the special seating for the Golden Ticket winners in front of the gates of Willy Wonka's factory. Maureen stared at the spectacle surrounding the event in amazement. A band was playing, policemen kept the crowds of people away from the winners, and cameras could be seen everywhere. "This is insane!" Laurie said to her mother. Maureen nodded and looked around, smiling. In just a few minutes, she would see her long-lost friend for the first time in years. She had no idea how he'd react. She knew he'd probably remember her, yes, but she had no idea how he'd react after seeing her after so many years. Next to the Traynors were Mike Teevee and his mother, as well as the sixth Golden ticket winner: a boy named Charlie Bucket who lived in this town in Surrey.

"Hey mom, we're on TV!" Mike shouted. He stood up and waved his arms around, the fringe on his leather jacket dangling around his arms. "Hi, everybody in Marble Falls! Hi, Billy! Hi, Maggie! Hi, Fishface! How do I look?" Down the line, Veruca Salt was showing off her Golden Ticket to reporters and cameras. Violet Beauregarde was advertising his car dealership back in Miles City, Montana. Augustus Gloop as eating some sort of baked good, but his mother almost immediately took the food away from her son, telling him to "save so room for later." Maureen looked to Laurie and saw that she was absent-mindedly doing miniature conducting with her hand.

"Really, Laurie?" Maureen asked.

"I'm trying to figure out the tempo," Laurie said.

"It's a march," Maureen said. "Marches are usually at 120 beats per minute and in cut time. So you should be doing a two pattern instead of a four." Laurie paused and flushed for a second before resuming her conducting in two.

"I knew that," Laurie said, trying to hide her musical mistake.

Next to Laurie sat Charlie Bucket. He moved closer to his grandfather and said, "Grandpa. I don't believe it. We did it; we're actually going in."

"We're going to see the greatest of them all: Mr. Willy Wonka," Charlie's grandpa said back with a broad smile. Maureen smiled to herself and laughed. He truly had come so far since those days in high school when she gave him piano lessons. Suddenly the bells began to chime as the clock struck ten. She could see gears turning in Laurie's head as she tried to figure out the tempo of the chimes.

"Assuming the notes are whole notes it'd be ninety," Maureen whispered, not looking away from the front door of the factory. Suddenly one of the doors swung open and the crowd went wild. Maureen saw a flash of purple through the window. Willy Wonka appeared in the doorway, holding a cane in one hand. Maureen smiled and clapped, happier to see him than she thought she would be. He wore a purple coat and tan slacks with a brown top hot sitting on his still unruly hair. Even in high school, he was never able to tame his blonde locks. Her smile faltered, however, when she noticed his was limping down the small steps at the entry. The crowd's cheers faded when they noticed this too. He limped down the red carpet, his cane clicking and flexing every time it hit the ground.

"You didn't tell me he had a limp," Laurie whispered to her mother.

"He didn't have one when I knew him," Maureen whispered back. He continued forward, taking off his hat as he neared the gates. Suddenly, the cane stuck between some of the space in the cobblestone and was left behind as Willy took a step forwards. He paused, flexed his hand, and then started to fall forwards. Maureen widened her eyes and nearly felt herself run towards him.

Suddenly, he went into a perfect somersault and popped back onto his two, perfectly working legs. Maureen laughed and cheered with the crowds as they went wild for Willy's theatrics. He motioned for the crowds to begin to quiet down, saying, "Thank you, thank you." He looked around the crowds and said, "Welcome, my friends. Welcome to my chocolate factory." He looked up at the Golden Ticket holders. "Would you come forward?" he asked, beckoning the guests forward with two fingers. The crowds went insane and the ticket holders sprinted down the aisle. Well, all except for the Traynors (Maureen and Laurie didn't want to get run over) and the Buckets (mainly because Charlie had to help his aging grandfather down the steps.)

"Veruca first! Get back, you!" Mr. Salt shouted. Maureen arched an eyebrow at his rudeness. Laurie stood in front of Maureen, helping Charlie help his grandpa down the stairs. Maureen and Laurie followed the Buckets as they waited for Willy to take the Golden Tickets. Veruca was the first at the gate.

"Welcome," Willy said to them. "It's nice to have you here. I'm so glad you could come. This is going to be such an exciting day. I hope you enjoy it." He looked around at each of the ticket holders. When his pale blue eyes met Maureen's, she could swear that his smile brightened ever so slightly. "I think you will. And now would you please show me your Golden Tickets." He took a step back as Veruca stepped forward.

"I'm Veruca Salt," she said as she handed him her Golden Ticket.

"My dear Veruca, what a pleasure," he said. "And how pretty you look in that lovely mink coat."

"I've got three others at home," she said proudly. Laurie rolled her eyes. Maureen knew that if there was anything her daughter detested most, it was materialism of any sort. Of course, when it came to nice instruments, Laurie's mindset completely changed.

"And Mr. Salt," Willy greeted, shaking the bald man's hand. "Overjoyed to see you, sir. Would you just step over there for a minute?"

"Augustus Gloop," the German boy said as he gave Willy the his Golden Ticket.

"Augustus, my dear boy, how good to see you," Willy said. "And in such fine shape. And this must be the radiant Mrs. Gloop," he said as Augustus's mother stepped forward. "Just over there, dear lady."

"Violet Beauregarde," Violet said, not bother to stop chewing her gum.

"Darling child, welcome to Wonka's," Willy said.

"What kind of gum you got?" she asked, chomping loudly on her gum. Willy let out a chuckle and place a hand on her jaw, halting her chewing.

"Charming, charming," he said.

"Sam Beauregarde here, Mr. Wonka," Mr. Beauregarde introduced. Willy went to shake his hand and was given a business card instead. "If ever you need anything in the automotive line, just call on Sam B, phone number's on the card. With Sam B, it's a guarantee."

"Okay, seriously?" Laurie whispered in a low murmur. "They don't even make cars with the steering on the correct side in America. How is he supposed to benefit from that business card?" Willy motioned for the Beauregardes to step to the side and the Teevee's step up.

"I'm Mike Teevee," Mike said as he gave Willy his Golden Ticket. He suddenly took out his toy gun and shouted, "Wham!" Willy recoiled and almost pretended to be injured. "You're dead!"

"Wonderful to meet you Mike," Willy said as he stood up and shook the boy's hand. "And Mrs. Teevee, how do you do? What an adorable little boy you have."

"Thank you," Mrs. Teevee replied with a smile. She stepped over to the side and Charlie stepped forward, holding out his ticket.

"Charlie Bucket," the boy said.

"Well, well, Charlie Bucket," Willy said with a genuine smile. "I read all about you in the papers. I'm so happy for you. And who is this gentleman?"

"My grandfather, Grandpa Joe," Charlie said with a smile. Willy shook the elderly man's hand and motioned for them to step to the side. Laurie held her own ticket and smile.

"Laurie Traynor," she said. Willy took her ticket and smile, shaking her hand.

"It's wonderful to meet you Laurie," he said. "You look almost exactly like Maureen did when she was your age."

"I get that a lot," Laurie said with a shrug and a smile. Maureen step forward, unable to contain her smile.

"Maureen," Willy said with a large smile. "It's so good to see you again. It's been, what, fifteen years?"

"Sixteen," Maureen corrected. "Last time I saw you was about a year before Laurie as born." She was very unsure of how to greet Willy at the moment, so she just held out her hand to shake his. Willy smirked and chuckle.

"Really? A handshake?" Willy asked jokingly. "I thought we were a little beyond that." He brought her into a short, friendly hug. This, of course, made the photographers go wild. "Is that everyone? Are we ready? Yes! Good! In we go!" Willy stuffed the tickets into his pocket and a policeman shut the gate. The band started playing as Willy strode towards the factory, picking up his cane effortlessly. The ticket winners followed the chocolatier down the red carpet and into the factory. When he reached the door, he stepped to the side and allowed each of the ticket winners in before him. One by one they piled into the factory. Maureen was the last to enter the doors, and Willy walked in behind her, shutting the doors. He rushed past her into the foyer of the factory.

Laurie looked up at Maureen and said, "That march was totally at 132."

"We enter the factory of one of the world's most famous chocolatiers and the first thing you comment on is the tempo of the march the band outside was playing?" Maureen asked. Laurie opened her mouth to retort, but immediately shut it and flushed with embarrassment.

"I see your point," she said. Maureen chuckled and walked past her daughter.

"By the way," Maureen added. "You're wrong, it was definitely 120." Willy rushed past her and made his way to the head of the group.

"Now: hats, coats, galoshes, over here," he said pointing to a wall full of hooks that looked like hands. "But hurry please, we have so much time and so little to see. Wait a minute! Strike that. Reverse it. Thank you." Maureen laughed as she took off her white wool coat, revealing her white dress with little blue flowers on the top and her tan crochet vest.

"I can't believe you still do that," she said to Willy.

"You know him?" Mr. Salt asked.

"I went to school with her," Willy said. "Winton Academy, class of 1952. We had literature and French courses together."

"He's the only reason I passed my French classes," Maureen said with a laugh as she put her coat on one of the hand-hangars. "This is the first time I've seen him in years." Laurie took off her orange and black plaid peacoat and placed it in one of the hands. She wrapped adjusted a loose button on her orange short-sleeved, button up cardigan and pulled down the neckline a little on her yellow cotton dress. When the hands suddenly grabbed the coats, she heard gasps from the other girls in the room.

"Little surprises around every corner but nothing dangerous. Don't be alarmed," Willy quickly said. Laurie stared wide-eyed at the hangars and tilted her head. "As soon as your outer vestments are in hand, we'll begin."

"So that happened," she said. Maureen turned around, trying to keep Willy's words in her mind. If he said there was no danger here, she trusted him.

"Now, would the children kindly step up here," Willy said, motioning to a spot at the top of a small set of steps with his cane. Laurie walked up the steps with the rest of the kids and waited for what was in store. Maureen watched as Willy pulled back a giant gold curtain, revealing a very large contract. As the contract went on, the print grew smaller and fainter. The parents were muttered various lines.

"Floods, fire, frost or frippery...?"

"Accidents? What kind of accidents?"

"Labor unions?"

"I didn't know we had to sign anything for this tour."

"...in trying to determine..."

"I can't read what it says at the bottom."

"Violet," Willy said, interrupting the sea of murmurs. "You first. Sign here," he said, motioning to a box at the bottom of the contract.

"Hold it!" Mr. Beauregarde shouted, fighting his way up to his daughter. "Violet, baby, don't you sign anything there. What's this all about?"

"Standard form of contract," Willy replied innocently.

"Don't talk to me about contracts, Wonka," Mr. Beauregarde said. "I use them myself. They're strictly for suckers."

"Yes," Willy said. "But you wouldn't begrudge me a little protection. A drop."

"I don't sign anything without my lawyer," Mr. Beauregarde said.

"My Veruca don't sign anything either," Mr. Salt interjected.

Willy shrugged and then said, "Then she don't go in. I'm sorry, rules of the house."

"I want to go in," Veruca wailed. "Don't you dare stop me."

"I'm only trying to help you sweetheart," Mr. Salt said, putting a hand on his daughter's shoulder.

"Gimme that pen!" Veruca shouted, shoving her father away. She turned to him and said, "You're always making things difficult." She marched up to the contract an signed at the bottom.

"Nicely handled, Veruca," Willy said. "She's a girl who knows where she's going. Violet?" he placed a hand on Violet's chin again, presumably to get her to stop chomping on the she had resumed chewing. Violet took the other quill pen and began to sign her name.

"Wait a minute, what's all that small print at the bottom?" Mr. Beauregarde asked.

" Oh, if you have any problems, dial information, thank you for calling," Willy replied. Maureen smiled at his eccentric antics. "Mike? Augustus?" The two young boys stepped up and took the pens from the two girls. They began to sign their names when Mrs. Teevee stepped forward.

"I assume there's an accident indemnity clause," she said.

"Never between friends," Willy replied.

"Saw this in a movie once," Mike said. "Guy signed his wife's insurance policy. Then he bumped her off."

"Clever," Willy said as the two boys stepped down. "Charlie? Laurie?"

"Mum?" Laurie asked. Maureen motioned for her to go ahead.

"I trust him," Maureen said. Laurie smiled, took a pen, and signed her name. She grimaced when she looked at her signature.

"I hate my signature so much," she muttered to herself. "But no matter how hard I try, I can't fix it."

"What about me, grandpa?" Charlie asked.

"Sign away, Charlie," Grandpa Joe said. "We got nothing to lose."

"Let's go in! Come on!" Veruca whined as Charlie signed his name.

"Patience, patience, little dear," Willy said. "Everything has to be in order." Charlie stepped back and bounced back to his grandfather. "Everyone's signed? Yes? Good! On we go!" He pointed ahead with his cane and jumped forwards. He walked to a door with a combination lock. "Ninety-nine... forty-four... one hundred percent pure." He pushed open the door and looked at his tour group. "Just through the other door please." It wasn't until Maureen entered the room ahead that she realized how claustrophobic she had gotten. It seemed that this hallway was dead end!


	8. The Chocolate Room

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 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Maureen felt herself get shoved into the back of the dead end hallway as the rest of the ticket winners filed in. The psychedelic black and white patterns on the walls only made things worse for the claustrophobic situation. "There is no other door!" she heard Mike squeal.

"There's no way out!" Veruca screamed.

"Well I know there's a door here someplace," Willy said. He started forcing his way through the crowd of people, knocking on the walls as he did so. Maureen felt an elbow dig into her spine and she let out a slight hiss.

"This is worse than Solo and Small Ensemble last year!" she heard Laurie shouted. Ordinarily, Maureen would have smiled at the memory of too many instrumentalists squeezed into one warm up area. However, at the moment, all she could do was try to avoid getting squished by Mr. Salt and Mrs. Gloop.

"Help! Mr. Wonka, help! I'm getting squashed! Save me!" she heard the German woman shout. A few seconds later, she felt a body get shoved against her back, pressing her into the wall. She saw a flash of purple by her and knew that Willy had been heaved against her.

"Is it my soul that calls upon my name?" Willy suddenly said. Maureen immediately understood the reference to Romeo and Juliet. She could have laughed if she were actually able to breathe at the moment. She was suddenly glad that Laurie was a flautist; her lung capacity was greater than the average person's.

"Let me out or I'll scream!" Veruca (ironically) screamed.

"You already are!" Laurie shouted back.

"Somebody's touching me!" Mrs. Teevee shrieked. Maureen was able to turn around enough to see Mr. Salt grab Willy's shoulder.

"Now look here, Wonka-" the red-faced man started. Willy interrupted, though, before Mr. Salt could say anything more.

"Excuse me, question time will come at the end of the session. We must press on. Come along, come along..." Willy forced his way back towards the original door. When he reached it, he said, "Ah! Here we are!"

"Don't be a darn fool, Wonka," Mr. Beauregarde snapped. "That's the way we came in!"

"It is? Are you sure?" Willy asked, looking up and down the glass door.

"We've just come through there!" Mr. Salt said. Willy raised his brow and leaned on the door handle.

"Huh," he said. "How do you like that?" The door suddenly opened and revealed a new hallway. The white hallway was lined with various brown doors while the floor had a brown, circle pattern on it. Maureen smiled and looked up at Willy. She had no idea how he did it, but it sure was amazing!

"What is this, Wonka? Some kind of fun house?" Mr. Salt demanded.

"Why, having fun?" Willy asked with a teasingly glint in his eyes.

"I am!" Laurie shouted.

"I've had enough," Mrs. Teevee said. "I'm not going in there."

"Come on, Violet," Mr. Beauregarde said, taking his daughter's shoulders. "We're getting out of here."

"Oh, you can't get out backwards," Willy said, walking forward. "You've gotta go forwards to go back. Better press on." Maureen saw Laurie shrug and walk forward, following Wonka. Maureen saw no reason why she shouldn't follow her daughter, so she squeezed through the ticket winners to catch up to Laurie. As they went forward, Maureen noticed the room was getting smaller. Willy was crouching as he continued down the hall.

"Hey! The room is getting smaller!" she heard Charlie exclaim.

"No it's not," Mrs. Teevee argued. "He's getting bigger."

"How does that make any sense?" Laurie questioned.

"Nothing makes sense in this factory!" Mr. Salt snapped.

"Where's the chocolate?" Mike asked.

"I doubt if there is any," Mr. Beauregarde snorted.

"I doubt if any of us will get out of here alive," Mr. Salt muttered. Maureen crouched down next to Laurie at the end of the hall, where Willy was waiting for everyone.

"Oh you should never, never doubt what nobody is sure about," Willy said.

"That's not entirely reassuring, Willy," Maureen said with a faint smirk.

"You're not squeezing me through that tiny door," Mrs. Gloop said.

"You're off you're bleeding nut, Wonka," Mr. Salt said. "No one can get through there."

"My dear friends, you are now about to enter the nerve center of the entire Wonka Factory," Willy said, looking around at all the contestants. "Inside this room, all of my dreams become realities. And some of my realities become dreams. And almost everything you see is eatable. Edible. I mean, you can eat almost anything."

"Let me in, I'm starving!" Augustus wailed.

"Now, don't get overexcited," Willy said to Augustus. "Don't lose your head, Augustus. We wouldn't want anyone to lose that! Yet." He pulled down a little flap on the door and a small keyboard appeared. Maureen's eyes brightened. Did that mean he still played? The little keyboard had just over an octave in range, far less than Maureen was used to. "Now, the combination... this is a musical lock." With one hand, Willy quickly played the starting notes to Mozart's Marriage of Figaro Overture. Maureen let out a loud laugh, causing everyone to look at her.

"You don't understand," Laurie explained. "That piece has been stalking her for the last six months."

"Rachmaninoff," Mrs. Teevee said approvingly. Maureen suddenly turned and glared at Mrs. Teevee, her eyes darkening considerably.

"It's Mozart," Maureen said. "More specifically, the Marriage of Figaro Overture. The two composers aren't even from the same musical eras. Mozart was Viennese Classical and Rachmaninoff was Romantic era. Their styles don't even sound the same."

"Geez, lady," Laurie joking added. "Know your music history." Mrs. Teevee just stood there stunned, ignorant to the growing smile on Willy's face.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Willy said, not even addressing the mistake of composers. "Boys and girls..." He opened up the door, which was suddenly very, very large. The ticket winners piled out of the door, every one of them stopping to look at the amazing sights. "The chocolate room." Maureen could feel her breathing stop when she looked at the amazing chocolate room.

Sunlight beamed into the room from the large windows on the walls. In front of them were rocky formations, covered with what looked like moss (possibly candy moss). The floors had stone pathways between various sections of green meadows. The meadows had candy cane trees and lollipop flowers, creamy mushrooms and giant gummy bear plants. Vines climbed up metal poles and ornate lamps. Candy balls scattered the room, possibly filled with all sorts of sweet stuff. In the center of the room was a giant waterfall that fell into a brown looking river. It had to be chocolate; what else could it be in this amazing room. Pipes carried the chocolate from the chocolate room to who-knows-where in the factory. The scent of fruity candies and chocolate wafted about the room, filling Maureen's nostrils. This was the most amazing thing Maureen had ever seen.

"Hold your breath," Willy said. "Make a wish. Count to three. _Come with me  
And you'll be  
In a world of  
Pure imagination  
Take a look  
And you'll see-"_ Willy swung his cane in front of the Beauregardes and Veruca, emitting a loud swoosh. " _Into your imagination."_ Willy danced down the first set of stairs, the Golden Ticket winners following him. Maureen looked at Laurie, who's eyes were full of wonder, amazement, and curiosity. She was uncontrollably smiling, unable to stop staring around the room. Willy suddenly spun around, nearly hitting the Teevees. _"We'll begin  
With a spin  
Traveling in  
The world of my creation,"_ Willy paused and leaned against his cane, using his other hand to motion to everything in the room. Maureen now found herself uncontrollably smiling. This world that Willy had created was beyond anything she could have imagined. " _What we'll see  
Will defy," _Willy stood and swooshed the cane in front of Veruca and Violet, emitting a loud crack when it hit the metal banister. _"Explanation."_

Willy rested the cane on his shoulders and danced down the next set of steps to the Chocolate room. Laurie laughed as she played his little, dance like game up and down the stairs. He swung his cane against the stair banister again and sang, " _If you want to view paradise  
Simply look around and view it," _Willy began to play with Mike's hair. " _Anything you want to, do it  
Wanta change the world?" _He plucked out a hair on Mike's head and flicked out into nothingness. " _There's nothing to it."_ Willy danced down the final steps to the chocolate room, followed by the eager steps of the children and adults. Willy suddenly turned around, holding out his arms to halt the tourists. He smirked as he looked at all of them, before motioning for them to enjoy with a spin of his cane and a bow. Laurie took Maureen's arm and ran off in a random direction.

"Come on, mum!" Laurie squeaked with a large smile on her face. Maureen laughed as she ran through the room with her daughter. Laurie found a candy cane tree and plucked a leaf from it, placing the leaf on her tongue. She moaned in delight and plucked a leaf for Maureen. "It's mint! It tastes amazing!" Maureen tried one and felt the sweet mint flavor melt onto her tongue. She went over to a mushroom and scooped some of the crème from the little spots. She tasted raspberry and vanilla as it slid down her throat.

"You're good for this," Maureen said to Laurie. "It's not strawberry." She looked over and saw Willy with a mushroom cap on his cane, strolling along and singing.

 _"There is no  
Life I know  
To compare with  
Pure imagination  
Living there  
You'll be free  
If you truly wish to be." _He looked over at Maureen and smiled, grabbing a nearby candy cane and tossing it to her. She caught it and laughed, watching as Willy took the mushroom cap off of his cane and roam about the room. He knocked down some gummy bears for Violet, poking a colorful tree and releasing tons of small candies to Mike, and kicking some of the candy balls around the room. Maureen caught a smaller one and tried to open it up against a rock. Laurie had run off by Charlie and his grandfather and was eating candy apples with him. Willy stood against a candy cane tree and start to sing once more. _"If you want to view paradise  
Simply look around and view it  
Anything you want to, do it  
Wanta change the world?  
There's nothing to it."_ Willy took off his hat and sat down in a small field of butter cups. " _There is no  
Life I know  
To compare with  
Pure imagination  
Living there  
You'll be free  
If you truly  
Wish to be."_

Willy took a sip from one of the buttercups. He then ate a bite out of it, emitting a loud crunch. Maureen had since given up on the candy ball, as it wasn't opening easily. Willy noticed her and motioned for her to sit down next to him. Maureen smiled and obliged. When she sat down, she was given a buttercup by Willy. "It's so good to see you again," he told her with a smile.

"I know," Maureen said. She let out a sigh and took a sip of the buttercup. She immediately taste lemonade in her mouth and smile. "This is all so amazing!"

"I'm glad you think so," he said. "How have you been?" He took another bite of the buttercup as he leaned back. "I heard from interviews that you and Jonathan aren't together anymore."

"We divorced shortly before Laurie was born," Maureen said. "I got pregnant with Laurie, he suddenly said he didn't want to have a child, not to mention he thought I should give up the piano to be the perfect little housewife, and then asked for a divorce. The fact that he openly admitted to cheating on me with another woman made the process go faster." Willy frowned and placed a hand on top of Maureen's.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Willy said. "I never liked the man, but at the same time I know you cared about him."

"I should have listened to you," Maureen said with a faint smile. "Last I heard, he was living in the states with his fourth wife. The arse actually sent me an invitation." Willy grimaced and Maureen sighed. "Laurie decided on her own that she never wanted anything to do with him. We're actually good friends with his second wife and her new family. I'm still not entirely sure how I ended up friends with the woman Jonathan cheated on me with." She let out a faint laugh and watched as Laurie explored the chocolate room.

"Well, he clearly didn't deserve you," Willy said. "Asking you to give up the piano would be like asking me to give up chocolate."

"Exactly," Maureen said with a giggle. "I was worried about you when I heard that you closed down your factory. I wanted to contact you but I didn't know how... not to mention I wasn't sure if you'd want to talk to me."

"Why ever would you think that?" Willy asked. "Of course I'd want to talk to you. In fact, I'd probably have welcomed it during that time. I was trying to contact you as well, but I kept looking for Maureen Abbott rather than Maureen Traynor." Maureen widened her eyes in shock.

"You tried looking for me?" she asked. Willy nodded. "Well I feel like an idiot now."

"Don't," Willy said. "I feel like one for not thinking of searching for you by your maiden name when I couldn't find you by your married name."

"Why don't we just agree that we were both idiots?" Maureen suggested, taking another sip of the lemonade buttercup.

"Alright," Willy said. He held out his buttercup and said, "To us being idiots and not reuniting sooner." Maureen looked over and saw Laurie and Charlie sword-fighting with candy canes while Grandpa Joe laughed and ate another candy cane. Maureen started laughing and shook her head. "You did an amazing job raising Laurie by yourself. She seems like a good kid."

"She is," Maureen said. "A lot like me. Though she chose to play the flute rather than pursue piano. Speaking of which, you still play?"

"Of course," Willy said. "Why wouldn't I? I'm not nearly as good as you though. Which reminds me..." he took out a piece of paper from his coat pocket and unfolded it, along with a pen. "Sign this?" Maureen took the pen and signed her name.

"Why?" Maureen asked as she signed.

"So I can say I have the autograph of a world renowned pianist," he replied. Maureen looked at the paper and suddenly realized it was a program. She took a closer look and saw that it was from when she performed as a soloist with the Surrey Philharmonic six months prior. She widened her eyes in shock and looked up at Willy.

"Where did you get this?" she asked.

"From your performance six months ago," Willy said, putting the program back into is inner pocket. "You performed beautifully, by the way."

"You were there?" she questioned incredulously. Willy nodded. "Why didn't you come say hello? They would have let you backstage; you're Willy bloody Wonka." Willy smiled and chuckled lightly.

"I didn't want to steal your spotlight," he said. "The ticket contest had just been announced. It was your night. I wasn't going to interfere."

"I have plenty of spotlight nights," Maureen said with a light, teasing slap to Willy's arm. "I wouldn't have cared if you stole it that night!" Willy was laughing as he finished eating his buttercup. Maureen couldn't help but laugh along as well. At that moment, they weren't a famous pianist and a genius chocolatier; they were simply two friends reuniting after so many years.

Suddenly Laurie ran up to them with two candy canes in hand. She dropped one at Maureen's feet and said, "En garde!"

"Really?" Maureen asked with a smile. "Why are you fencing with it instead of eating it?"

"Because according to Charlie, it's strawberry," Laurie said. Maureen nodded in understand and looked over at the confused Willy.

"She's allergic to strawberries," Maureen explained.

"Ah," Willy said. He put on his hat and took the other candy cane. "Allow me to take on this challenge, Madame?"

"Of course, good sir," Maureen jokingly responded. Willy stood up and handed his cane to Maureen while he took the candy cane and assumed a fencing position.

"En garde, pret, allez," Willy said. Laurie and the chocolatier began fencing with the candy canes. The danced about the room, play fighting with the candy-cane swords. Maureen sat in the buttercups and laughed as she watched her daughter square off against Willy. The chocolatier then let Laurie get a hit on him, exclaiming, "Arrêt! Touché!" Willy fell to the ground in fake anguish, dropping the candy cane next to him. Laurie laughed and set her own candy cane down, helping Willy to his feet. The two walked back to where Maureen sat, who was now unable to stop laughing at the antics of the two.

"You were right, mum," Laurie said. "He _is_ awesome." She bounded over to a gummy bear tree and grabbed an orange on as Willy walked back to where Maureen sat, still uncontrollably laughing. Willy held out a hand and helped Maureen to her feet. It was almost as if they were in high school again.


	9. Secret Tunnel

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* * *

When Maureen got to her feet, she and Willy noticed Mrs. Gloop and Mr. Salt inspecting the chocolate river. "What a disgusting dirty river," Mrs. Gloop commented.

"It's industrial waste, that," Mr. Salt added. Maureen rolled her eyes. How could they be stupid enough to think that it was dirt or waste? It quite obviously smelled of chocolate. "You've ruined your watershed, Wonka. It's polluted."

"It's chocolate," Willy said with a smile.

"That's chocolate!?" Veruca asked in shock.

"That's chocolate," Charlie said in amazement,

"A chocolate river," Violet murmured.

"That's the most fantastic thing I've ever seen," Grandpa Joe said.

"Ten thousand gallons an hour," Willy said. The moved his cane to point to the waterfall. "And look at my waterfall. That's the most important thing. It's mixing my chocolate. It's actually churning my chocolate. You know, no other factory in the world mixes its chocolate by waterfall." He leaned closer to Mr. Salt and said, "It's the only way to get it just right."

"Grandpa, look over there!" Charlie suddenly shouted. "Across the river! They're little men!"

"Jumping crocodiles, Charlie!" Grandpa Joe exclaimed. The tourists clamored over to see the what Charlie had pointed out. Maureen turned and saw what appeared to be little men with orange faces, green hair, and white eyebrows. She dropped her jaw in shock and turned to Willy, who merely stood there with a faint smile on his face. "Now we know who makes the chocolate."

"They're so rad," Laurie said.

"I never saw anybody with an orange face before," Mr. Salt said.

"What are they doing?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"It must be creaming and sugaring time," Willy said.

"They can't be real people," Violet said.

"Of course they're real people," Willy replied.

"Stuff and nonsense," Mr. Salt snorted.

"No," Willy said. "Oompa Loompas."

"Oompa Loompas!?" the entire group exclaimed as they turned around. Maureen tilted herself to the side and arched an eyebrow. Willy merely stood there, leaning against a mushroom, and nodded.

"From Loompaland," Willy said.

"Loompaland?" Mrs. Teevee asked. "There's no such place."

"Excuse me, dear lady-"

"Mr. Wonka, I am a teacher of geography," Mrs. Teevee said with an almost cocky smirk.

"Oh, well then you know all about it and what a terrible country it is," Willy said. Mrs. Teevee's smile turned into a look of confusion. "Nothing but desolate wastes and fierce beasts. And the poor little Oompa Loompas were so small and helpless, they would get gobbled up right and left. A Wangdoodle would eat ten of them for breakfast and think nothing of it. And so, I said, 'Come and live with me in peace and safety, away from all the Wangdoodles and Hornswogglers and Snozzwangers and rotten Vermicious Knids.'"

"Oh..." Laurie murmured. "Those poor Oompa Loompas."

"Snozzwangers? Vermicious Knids? What kind of rubbish is that?" Mr. Salt asked.

"I'm sorry, but all questions must be submitted in writing," Willy snapped. "And so, in the greatest of secrecy I transported the entire population of Oompa Loompas to my factory here."

"Daddy, I want an Oompa Loompa!" Veruca demanded. "I want you to get me an Oompa Loompa right away."

"All right, Veruca, all right," Mr. Salt absentminded promised while eating whatever it was he was eating. "I'll get you one before the day is out."

"I want an Oompa Loompa now!" Veruca wailed.

"Can it, you nit!" Violet shouted, turning around and giving Veruca a harsh glare. Veruca glared at Violet and took an angry bite out of a taffy candy leaf. Laurie let out a faint smile and laugh. Maureen knew that Violet had taken the words right out of Laurie's mouth. Maureen stood and watched some of the Oompa Loompas work with a faint smile on her face. Suddenly she heard Willy start to panic a little.

"Oh, uh, Augustus, please, don't do that. My chocolate must never be touched by human hands," Maureen turned around and saw that Augustus was kneeling by the chocolate river, scooping up handfuls of the melted chocolate into his mouth. Maureen dropped her jaw and tried to get out of Willy's way. The other ticket winners, however, didn't seem to understand they were blocking his path to Augustus. "Plea- don't do that! Don't do that; you're contaminating my entire river. Please, I beg you, Augustus!" Suddenly, the boy had fallen face-first into the river. Willy exclaimed, "My chocolate!"

"Help!" Augustus called out. Mrs. Gloop screamed and held her hands to her head.

"My chocolate!" Willy shouted. "My beautiful chocolate!"

"Don't just stand there; do something!" Mrs. Gloop demanded.

Willy merely deadpanned and said, "Help. Police. Murder," with absolutely no enthusiasm whatsoever.

"Quick Charlie, here!" Maureen saw Grandpa Joe hand Charlie one of the large lollipops in the room. Charlie took it and held it out to Augustus.

"Augustus, grab this!" Charlie said. Augustus reached for the lollipop, but his hands slipped from it and he was pulled under the chocolate.

"What's happening to him?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"It looks like he's drowning," Mr. Salt said.

"Dive in!" Mrs. Gloop demanded. "Save him!"

"Oh, it's too late," Willy said nonchalantly. He pulled out a Wonka bar and tore off a piece of chocolate. "He's had it now; the suction's got him."

"What suction?" Mr. Salt asked.

"Augustus come back! Where is he?" Mrs. Gloop shrieked.

"Watch the pipe," Willy calmly replied, taking a bite of the chocolate. The bubbles, indicating where Augustus was, moved towards the pipe.

"How long is he going to stay down, daddy?" Veruca asked.

"He can't swim!" Mrs. Gloop wailed. Maureen widened her eyes in shock and glanced from the pipe to Willy, seeing if he'd do anything.

"There's no better time to learn," was all Willy said. He took another bite of chocolate and looked at the pipe. Maureen saw a flash of what looked like a coat going up the pipe. The coat stopped and the flow of chocolate. Augustus's head appeared. The poor boy was covered in melted chocolate and screaming for help.

"Call a plumber," Mr. Beauregarde said.

"He's stuck in the pipe there, isn't he, Wonka?" Mr. Salt asked. "It's his stomach that's done that."

"He's blocking all the chocolate!" Violet exclaimed.

"What happens now?" Laurie asked Willy.

"Oh, the pressure will get him out," Willy explained. "Terrific pressure is building up behind the blockage." A commotion rose from the tourists as they wondered how long it would take for him to get out. "The suspense is terrible. I hope it'll last," Willy said as he ate another bite of chocolate.

"This is terrible!" Mrs. Gloop shrieked.

"He'll never get out," Charlie said.

" Yes, he will, Charlie," Grandpa Joe said. "Watch. Remember you once asked me how a bullet comes out of a gun?" At that moment, Augustus was shot up through the pipe, the chocolate slowly resuming its normal flow.

"He's gone!" Mrs. Gloop cried. "He'll be made into marshmallows in five seconds!"

"Impossible, my dear lady," Willy said. "That's absurd! Unthinkable!"

"Why?" Mrs. Gloop asked.

"Because that pipe doesn't go to the marshmallow room. It goes to the fudge room," Willy explained. He reached into his coat and pulled out a small pipe whistle. Maureen saw Laurie immediately widen her eyes and smile. She always did have a thing for pretty instruments, no matter how big or small. He played a quick little melody. Maureen was able to catch the tritone at the end and could practically hear Laurie seething. Maureen couldn't blame her; neither of them liked the sound of a tritone. An Oompa Loompa immediately came over to Willy.

Willy bent down to the little man and said, "Take Mrs. Gloop straight to the fudge room, but look sharp, or her little boy is liable to get poured into the boiler."

"You've boiled him up, I know it!" Mrs. Gloop wailed.

"Nihil desperandum, dear lady," Willy assured her as he lead her over to the Oompa Loompa. "Across the desert lies the promised land." The Oompa Loompa took Mrs. Gloop by the hand and led her through the chocolate room. "Goodbye, Mrs. Gloop. Adieu! Auf wiedersehen! Gesundheit! Farewell." That was, of course, when the Oompa Loompas began to _sing_ of all things.

" _Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-do_

 _I have a perfect puzzle for you_

 _Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-dee_

 _If you are wise, you'll listen to me_

 _What do you get when you guzzle down sweets?_

 _Eating as much as an elephant eats_

 _What are you at getting terribly fat?_

 _What do you think will come of that?_

 _I don't like the look of it_

 _Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-da_

 _If you're not greedy, you will go far_

 _You will live in happiness too_

 _Like the Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-do."_ The Oompa Loompas finished creaming and sugaring the river, going back into the stone wall they came out of. Before the last one left, he sang a quick, " _Doom-pa-dee-do._ " And then the stone door shut. Everyone was silent for a moment, unsure of what to make of the spontaneous singing. Then again, Willy himself had spontaneously burst into song less than fifteen minutes ago.

"They were pretty in tune," Laurie finally said. "I was getting an A, B, A prime pattern from that."

"Same," Maureen said. The tourists looked at the two music-nerd Traynors in confusion, clearly having no idea what they were talking about. Maureen looked up at Willy with a questioning look. "Would I be right? Or did your musical training end with me?"

"No, you'd be right," Willy said.

"What kind of place you running here anyhow, Wonka?" Mr. Beauregarde demanded.

"Uh, mesdames et messieurs, maintenant nous allons faire grand petit voyage par bateau," Willy said.

"What's he talking about?" Mr. Salt asked.

"Something about a big little boat," Maureen said. Willy shook his head and chuckled lightly. "I'm wrong, aren't I?" Willy nodded, still laughing. "Good to know. This is why I relied on you to pass French."

"Voulez-vous entrer le Wonkatania?" Willy asked. He motioned to the side and out of the tunnel a beautiful paddle boat drifted forward. Maureen widened her eyes in amazement. The boat was painted blue, white, and gold with the signature Wonka 'W' embossed on a little flag on the front. At her helm was an Oompa Loompa, as well as four others manning the paddle. In the boat there were five sets of seats, all covered in bright red fabric. Maureen looked up at Willy, and saw him looking right back at her.

"J'aimerais bien," Maureen said with a smile.

"Je suis heureux d'entendre que , ma chère dame," Willy whispered back.

"Wow, what a boat!" Charlie exclaimed.

"Looks good enough to eat," Grandpa Joe said.

"That's quite a nice little canoe you've got there, Wonka," Mr. Salt snorted.

"All I ask is a tall ship and a start to sail her by," Willy replied. Laurie suddenly jumped up an gasped.

" _Sea Fever_ by John Masefield!" Laurie shouted. "We just studied that in class!"

"All aboard, everybody," Willy said.

"Ladies first! And that means Veruca!" Mr. Salt said, shoving people out of the way.

"If she's a lady, I'm a Vermicious Knid," Grandpa Joe snorted. Maureen smiled and let out a light laugh. She liked this man. His grandson seemed like a good kid too. They piled onto the boat and Laurie claimed a spot in the seat next to the Buckets.

"You sure this thing'll float, Wonka?" Mr. Salt asked.

"With your buoyancy, sir, rest assured," Willy replied. Mr. Salt seemed to accept this for a moment, before frowning in confusion.

"She's tres joli, but is she seaworthy?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"She doesn't need to be seawothy," Laurie said. "Just chocolate riverworthy."

"You have nothing to worry about, my dear lady," Willy said. "I take good care of my guests."

"Yeah," Mr. Beauregard said. "You took real good care of that August kid over there."

"Everybody aboard?" Willy asked as he climbed onto the little boat. "You're going to love this," he said, looking around at each of the tourists. His eyes rested on Maureen when he said, "Just love it." The Oompa Loompa at the wheel rang the bell and the boat was off.

"Hey, Daddy, I want a boat like this," Veruca said as they took off down the chocolate river. "A beautiful paddle boat, that's what I want."

"What she wants is a good kick in the pants," Maureen heard Grandpa Joe mutter. Maureen let out a light chuckle and looked up to see Willy chuckling lightly as well. He turned his head and met her eyes, causing her to flush ever so slightly and turn away her gaze. It was enough to where Maureen didn't notice anything strange about her reaction, but Laurie did. Laurie looked between Maureen and Willy and smirked a knowing smirk.

"I think I'm gonna be seasick," Mrs. Teevee moaned.

"You mean riversick," Laurie corrected.

"Here," Willy said, he pulled out a little lavender Candy and handed it to Mrs. Teevee. "Try one of these."

"What are they?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"Rainbow drops," Willy replied. "Suck them and you can spit in seven different colors."

"Spitting's a dirty habit," Violet said. Maureen turned around and saw the little girl with her pinkie finger shoved up her nose.

"I know a worse one," Willy said.

"What business you in, Salt?" Mr. Beauregarde asked.

"Nuts," Mr. Salt replied. Laurie suddenly stared blankly forward and lowered her jaw ever so slightly.

"That makes so much sense," Laurie said. The boat continued down the chocolate river, everything seemingly peaceful.

That is, until they reached a tunnel.

"I don't like the looks of that tunnel up there," Mr. Beauregarde said. "Hey, Wonka, I want off!"

"Round the world and home again, that's the sailor's way!" Willy said with a very cryptic smile. Maureen knew him and knew that there wasn't going to be anything dangerous in the tunnel... but he certainly planned on scaring the ever-living daylights out of them. Laurie would enjoy this tunnel. Maureen would not. They entered the dark tunnel and the boat picked up in pace. Bands of light streamed past them. Everyone but the Buckets and Traynors started making a worried commotion while Willy sat there yelling, "Faster! Faster!" Suddenly colors started flashing on the walls, giving Maureen a vague idea what an acid trip felt like. "Faster!" Willy shouted.

"What is this, a freak-out?" Violet demanded.

"This isn't funny, Wonka!" Mr. Beauregarde shouted.

"You can't possibly see where you're going, Wonka!" Mr. Salt added.

"You're right," Willy said. "I can't."

"Boy, what a great series this would make!" Mike exclaimed.

"This is kind of strange..." Charlie said.

"Yeah, strange, Charlie. But fun!" Grandpa Joe said. He let out a loud laugh.

"This is awesome," Lauie said while laughing. Mrs. Teevee let out a loud moan. Suddenly disgusting images began to appear on the walls. A praying mantis bit off the head of its prey; a centipede crawled over a man's face; a eyeball looking around.

"I think I'm gonna be sick," Mrs. Teevee moaned. An image of a chicken being beheaded suddenly appeared and Mrs. Teevee scream. "Now I am gonna be sick!" Laurie was laughing in enjoyment while Maureen was merely silent, unsure of how to react. As long as no spiders appeared on the walls, she was fine. She always had been, and always will be, arachnophobic. The children and parents screamed as the image of a lizard eating a cricket appeared before them.

" _There's no earthly way of knowing,"_ Willy sang.

"Great... he's singing," Mr. Salt murmured.

" _Which direction we are going,_

 _There's no knowing where we're rowing,_

 _Or which way the river's flowing,_

 _Is it raining, is it pouring, is a hurricane a-blowing?"_ the Chocolatier sang. He suddenly let out a gasp and said, "Bleh! Not a speck of light is showing, so the danger must be growing. Are the fires of hell a glowing? Is the grisly reaper mowing? Yes! The danger must be growing, for the rowers keep on rowing and they're certainly not showing any signs that they are slowing!" He suddenly let out a loud, shrill scream, causing everyone else to scream. Maureen saw the image of a clutch of spiders hatching and shut her eyes as tight as they could go. Laurie was still laughing beside her, but put a hand on her mother's to try and calm her from the images of the spiders.

"Make him stop, Daddy!" Veruca wailed.

"Wonka, this has gone far enough!" Mr. Salt shouted.

"Quite right, sir!" Willy shouted in response. Maureen took a breath and opened her eyes. "Stop the boat!" Everything suddenly went dark and then the light suddenly came back on. All was calm and they were next to another room labeled the _Inventing Room._ "We're there."

"Where?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"Here," Willy simply replied. "One small step for mankind, but a giant step for us. All ashore!" Everyone clamored to get off the boat as fast as they could.

"That was so awesome!" Laurie shouted. Some of the parents looked at the girl as if she were nuts.

"I would like to point out that she's the girl who watches horror films for the music," Maureen said. Laurie smiled and giggled.

"Well, the music is what makes it!" Laurie said. "I mean, have you ever watched a horror film on mute? It's just kind of like, 'Oh. Hey. Nosferatu just kind of appeared. No big deal.' But then when you add the music, it's so much scarier!" She hopped off the boat, nearly falling face first. Willy was able to catch her arm and help her ashore. He extended his hand to Maureen, who accepted it as she stepped off the boat.


	10. Der Inventing Room

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**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

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Laurie stepped off the boat… well, more like nearly face planted off the boat. Luckily, Willy caught her and made sure she didn't pull an Augustus Gloop and fall in the river. As she approached the room, she saw Charlie and Grandpa Joe reading a sign on a door next to the Inventing Room. "Dairy cream…" Charlie read.

"Whipped cream," read Grandpa Joe.

"Coffee cream," Charlie read on.

"Vanilla cream," Grandpa Joe continued. They turned to each other in confusion when they read the final line.

"Hair cream?" Laurie bounced up to them and rested her elbows on their shoulders.

"How else do you expect Mr. Wonka to keep those curls under control?" Laurie asked. She bounced away, joining the rest of the crowd as Willy pulled out a strange, two-pronged device.

"Meine Herrschaften, schenken Sie mir ihre aufmerksamkeit," Willy said as he stuck the two-pronged thing into the key holes on the Inventing Room door. Laurie supposed that it was probably the key for the room. That was clever: giving it two locks that must be opened as one.

"You speak German?" Maureen asked. She didn't get an answer though.

"Sie kommen jetzt in den interessantesten und gleichzeitig geheimsten raum meiner fabric," Willy continued.

"I can't take much more of this," Mr. Salt moaned.

"Of course you speak German when the Gloops are gone," Maureen murmured. "Now I know how the rest of you felt earlier."

"Maine Damen und Herren, der Inventing Room," Willy finished as he put away the two-pronged key. "Now remember, no messing about. No touching, no tasting, no telling."

"No telling what?" Grandpa Joe asked.

"You see, all of my most secret inventions are cooking and simmering in here." Willy explained. "Old Slugworth would give his false teeth to get inside for just five minutes, so don't touch a thing!" When Slugworth was mentioned, Laurie saw some of the children not-so-subtly turn to their parents. Laurie resisted the urge to roll their eyes. It was just as she suspected; Slugworth made the offer to the other contestants as well. Now she just hoped they didn't run into any Everlasting Gobstoppers. Willy stepped away and allowed the tourists into the room. When Laurie entered the room, she stepped to the side to get a good look at it.

The room was filled with the beeping and whirring of various contraptions that she could scarcely describe. Pots of different things were bubbling and steaming while Oompa Loompas observed and added and mixed and whatnot. It was also incredibly messy. Clearly no woman had set foot in this room before today.

"Inventing room? It looks more like a Turkish bath to me," Grandpa Joe asked. Laurie had no idea what a Turkish bath even was, so the analogy was lost on her.

"Even if Slugworth did get in here, he couldn't find anything," Charlie added.

"I don't know…" Laurie said. "Once he figured out the system Wonka has going on, he probably could."

"What makes you think there's a system?" Charlie asked.

"Well, everyone has a system," Laurie said. "And no matter how unorthodox, everyone has a way of organizing things. Wonka's way is just far less obvious."

"What is his way?" Laurie shrugged and walked forward.

"No idea," was her simple reply. She went over towards the other children and looked at the amazing things, trying to figure out Wonka's system. It was going to bug her until she figured it out; she just knew based on how she was. She looked over and saw Willy mixing some sort of concoction. Veruca was waving her arm over a vat and blowing over it, trying to cool it off or something.

Laurie saw Willy pick up an alarm clock and tell her, "Time is a precious thing. Never waste it." He threw the alarm clock into the vat and moved on.

"He's absolutely bonkers," Veruca said.

"And that's not bad," Charlie said with a smile. Mike was eating something. Laurie was sure it would bite him in the butt later on. She watched as her mother and Willy talked some more. Laurie smirked and shook her head. As soon as Veruca had moved on, she nudged Charlie. "What?"

"Mr. Wonka and my mom are totally flirting," Laurie whispered.

"How can you tell?" Charlie asked.

"My mom's wearing her 'I don't realize I'm flirting' face, for one," she said. "And secondly, haven't you noticed how Mr. Wonka's been looking at her? His eyes brighten ever so slightly when he talks to her. Its little things that make it obvious. Not that anyone besides us could tell."

"Why don't you think so?" Charlie asked.

"Veruca only has her mind on herself and Mike, well…" Suddenly there was a loud explosion and Mike tumbled into some pots and pans. Mrs. Teevee screamed and Mike was smoking from the mouth.

"Good point," Charlie said, as Willy began to lecture Mike. "But what about Violet?"

"Hmm," Laurie murmured, thoughtfully stroking her chin. "I guess she might be able to. But gum tends to hold most of her focus. So really, who knows?" She looked back at her smiling mother and knew that winning a golden ticket was definitely destiny; the looks on Willy and Maureen's face definitely said so.

* * *

Maureen entered the Inventing Room and immediately knew that he was just as organized now as he was in school… which is to say he wasn't organized at all. The entire room was messy and filled with the steam from various pots. Things bubbled, whistles, whirred, and tooted. In a way, it looked a lot like the garage that Willy invented candy in. His parents never used it, so he converted it into a space for confectionary sciences. She followed Willy as he made his way to an inventing table. "You got a garbage strike going on here, Wonka?" Mr. Beauregarde asked. Willy ignored the question and immediately started to mix together a concoction of various liquids.

"Who does your cleaning up?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"Shouldn't you be wearing rubber gloves? You'll have the health inspectors after you, you know that, don't you?" Mr. Salt asked. Maureen rolled her eyes at the adults. How did they not see that this was the centerpiece of Willy's imagination? Sure the Chocolate room was that imagination manifested into physical form, but here, the possibilities were endless. Things could be tested, experimented, and perfected in this room.

"Invention, my dear friends, is ninety-three percent perspiration, six percent electricity, four percent evaporation, and two percent butterscotch ripple," Willy said. Maureen smiled and laughed. He'd said the same thing to her once, long ago.

"That's a hundred and five percent!" Mrs. Teevee snapped.

"That extra five percent in needed to make some extraordinary," Maureen said. Willy gave her a knowing smirk as he drank the concoction.

"Any good?" Mr. Salt asked.

Willy nodded and then said, "Yes," in an almost hilariously high pitched voice. He turned around and walked up to Veruca, who was trying blowing over a bubbling, steaming vat. "Time is a precious thing. Never waste it." He threw an alarm clock into the vat and moved on. Maureen laughed and found herself looking at a bicycle with mixing stuff attached to the hind wheel. She was pretty sure the bike looked familiar…

"Willy?" she asked. Willy walked over to her and looked at the bike with a light in his eyes. "Is this the bike you used to ride to school?"

"I'm surprised you recognize it," he said. He hopped onto the bike and began to pedal and sing, _"In springtime, the only pretty ring time birds sing, hey ding, a-ding, a-ding, sweet lovers love, the spring."_

Maureen smiled, remembering that old warm up Mrs. Maguire used in chorus. She loved knowing the little references that he often made that only she could get. Suddenly there was a loud banging sound and the tumble of metal pots and pans. "Mike!" Mrs. Teevee screeched.

Willy sighed and shook his head, saying, "I told you not to, silly boy."

"Your teeth!" Mrs. Teevee screamed.

"Boy, that's great stuff," Mike said, smoke coming from his mouth.

"That's exploding candy for your enemies," Willy said, getting off the bike. "Great idea, isn't it. Not ready yet, though, still too weak. Needs more gelignite." Maureen raised an eyebrow and shook her head. Of course it wasn't powerful enough for him yet. Willy turned on his heel wearing his signature smile and looked at Maureen. "What? I know you're giving me a look behind my back."

"What look?" Maureen asked.

"That one," he replied.

"Which one, you'll have to be more specific," Maureen said. Willy rolled his eyes and shook his head. He dipped a finger into a nearby pot and tasted it. He seemed to ponder for a moment and then he picked up a sneaker and threw it in.

"What's that for?" Mr. Salt asked.

"Gives it a little kick," Willy replied. Maureen laughed at the man's antics. Clever as always… Mr. Salt suddenly pulled Willy to the side to ask him something. The only part of the conversation Maureen heard was Willy saying, "Candy is dandy but liquor is quicker."

"Reminds me of the garage," Maureen said to Willy. "A larger scale garage."

"Well, inventing had to start somewhere," Willy replied, keeping a careful eye on everyone in the room. "You were just lucky enough to see its earliest stage. Remember when I tried to make candy to help the vocal chords?"

"Oh my Lord, our tongues swelled up so badly," Maureen laughed. "It was the night of a concert too. Maguire was livid. Luckily I didn't need my tongue to play piano."

"She nearly gave me a failing grade, too," Willy said. "Then there was the frog incident."

"I still don't know that frog got into the batch and lived," Maureen recalled. "Marion's still afraid of frogs because of that and won't eat anything associated with the color green."

"Really?" he asked. Maureen nodded, chuckling lightly. "I feel bad now."

"Don't," Maureen said. "She and her kids still love your candy. In fact, her husband runs the shop that Laurie got her Golden Ticket from."

"Really?" Willy asked. Maureen nodded. "You know, I think I recall reading an interview where Laurie said that getting some of my chocolate was a tradition the two you have for after every concert." Maureen paused and flushed. She looked down and bit her lip as Willy started laughing. "Why are you so embarrassed about that?"

"I don't know," Maureen said. "I just suddenly am." He gently lifted her chin so that she was looking into his very pretty blue eyes.

"Don't be," he said. He then walked away to inspect another vat. He placed his hand in it and immediate screamed and recoiled.

"What's the matter? Too hot, Mr. Wonka?" Violet asked.

"No, too cold," he answered, grabbing a thick coat and tossing it in. "Far too cold." Suddenly a loud buzzer went off and Mr. Beauregarde jumped. "No! Don't. Please. Forgive me, but no one must look under there. This is the most secret machine in my entire factory. This is the one that's really going to sizzle old Slugworth."

"What's it do?" Charlie asked. Willy walked around to the end of the machine and leaned on in, appearing almost condescending in a way.

He smirked and asked, "Would you like to see?"

"Yeah," Charlie replied, a light appearing in his eyes similar to Willy's. Willy smiled and pressed a button, causing the machine to flare to life. Two long, mechanical arms covered with green fabric moved back and forth while a little blue fabric arched up and down. A pink thing was moving up and down next to another blue fabric covered thing that was spinning around. As the machine worked its magic, little multicolored candies came out on the little conveyor belt. "But what's it do?" Charlie asked.

"Can't you see? It makes Everlasting Gobstoppers," Willy said, picking one up.

"Did you say Everlasting Gobstoppers?" Violet asked. Willy mouthed the name of the candy with her and nodded.

"That's right," he said. "For children with very little pocket money. You can suck 'em forever."

"I want an Everlasting Gobstopper!" Veruca shouted.

"Me too!" Violet said.

"And me!" Mike said. Willy smelled the candy and smirked.

"Fantastic invention," he said. "Revolutionize the industry. You can suck 'em and suck 'em and suck 'em, and they'll never get any smaller. Never. At least I don't think they do. A few more tests."

"How do you make 'em?" Mike asked.

Willy pointed to his right ear and said, "I'm a trifle deaf in this ear. Speak a little louder next time. Who wants an Everlasting Gobstopper?" The children all said, 'me!' or 'I do!' Well, all but Laurie, which Maureen found a little strange. "I can only give them to you if you solemnly swear to keep them for yourselves and never show them to another living soul as long as you all shall live. Agreed?"

"Agreed!" the children echoed.

"Wait, does it have strawberry in it?" Laurie asked. Willy seemed to wince and nodded.

"It does, I'm so sorry," he said.

"It's fine," Laurie said. "Besides, knowing me, I would have lost it somewhere. We wouldn't want it in the wrong hands." Willy nodded and smiled a knowing smile. Maureen had no idea what he knew, but he certainly knew something. "Now, one for you, one for you, and one for you."

"You forgot about Charlie," Laurie said.

"And one for Charlie," Willy said, plopping a Gobstopper into his hand.

"She's got two! I want another one!" Veruca screamed.

"Stop squawking, you twit!" Violet shouted back, holding out her single Gobstopper.

"Everybody has had one, and one is enough for anybody," Willy snapped sternly. "Now come along." He parted the crowd and started to walk forward. "Now over here, if you'll follow me, I have something rather special to show you." He led them to a large, strange looking contraption. Different shaped domes were around the multi-legged machine, as well as different plates, mechanisms, and ingredients. There was even a beehive at the top of the machine.

"It's special alright," Mr. Salt murmured. "I only hope my Veruca doesn't want one."

"Isn't she scrumptious? She's my revolutionary, non-pollutionary mechanical wonder," Willy said. "Now," Willy clapped his hands and looked around. "Button, button, who's got the button?" Charlie patted Willy on the shoulder and pointed.

"It's over here," he said. Willy walked over a little and pointed.

"Here?" Charlie nodded and Willy pressed the big red button. The machine whirred to life, making all sorts of squishes and clanks. One part of the machine pour salt by the cup full. Another part smashed tomatoes in a bowl with a large, circular disk. A third used boxing gloves to knead dough, causing flour to rise up into the air. A small tube dripped with honey from the beehive on the top of the confectionary giant. "What you are witnessing, dear friends, is the most enormous miracle of the machine age: the creation of a confectionery giant!" Willy explained. Maureen could feel the excitement in his voice as he talked about this prized machine. Leave it to Willy to come up with something so brilliant. Finally, he machine spit to a stop as a small, yellow thing popped out into a clear slot. "Finito!" he said as he took out the yellow candy.

"That's all?" Veruca asked.

"That's all!? Don't you know what this is?" Willy asked.

"By gum, it's gum!" Violet shouted.

"Wrong!" Willy replied. "It's the most amazing, fabulous, sensational gum in the whole world!"

"What's so fab about it?" Violet asked.

"You mean besides the fact that it's the sole product of this giant machine?" Laurie asked with an arched eyebrow.

"This little piece of gum is a three course dinner," Willy said.

"Bull," Mr. Salt grumbled.

"No, roast beef," Willy said. "But I haven't got it quite right yet."

"I don't care," Violet said as she grabbed the gum from Willy's hand.

"Oh!" Willy shouted, holding up one finger. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"So long as it's gum, then that's for me," Violet said.

"So you suddenly know better than the man who invented it and says it still has some kinks?" Laurie asked. She threw her hands in the eye and walked away, most likely not wanting to witness the results of Violet's stupidity. Violet popped the gum into her mouth and started chewing.

"What's it taste like?" Charlie asked.

"Madness!" Violet said. "It's tomato soup! It's hot and creamy. I can actually feel it running down my throat! It's delicious!"

"Stop, don't…" Willy said, completely unenthusiastic. Maureen sat down next to Willy and shrugged. He shrugged back as if to say, 'She's not going to listen to me anyway, so why should I even bother?' She patted his shoulder as if to comfort him. Meanwhile, Laurie was still stand with her back turned, arms crossed. She turned her head around to see what was happening and then quickly turned it back.

"What part of it isn't right yet?" Maureen asked.

"You'll see," Willy said.

"Hey, second course is coming up! Roast beef and a baked potato!" Violet shouted.

"With sour cream?" Mr. Beauregarde asked with a laugh. "What's for dessert, baby?"

"Dessert? Here it comes. Blueberry pie and cream! It's the most marvelous blueberry pie that I've ever tasted!" Violet said as she chewed. But the more she chewed, the more blue her face became. Maureen dropped her jaw and looked at Willy.

"So that's the problem," Maureen said. Willy nodded. Laurie turned around, rolled her eyes, and then turned back away from the scene.

"It gets worse," he told her.

"Holy Toledo, what's happening to your face?" Mr. Beauregarde exclaimed.

"Cool it, dad!" Violet snapped. "Let me finish."

"Yeah but your face is turning blue! Violet, you're turning violet, Violet!" Mr. Beauregarde shouted.

"What are you talking about?" Violet asked.

"I told you I hadn't got it quite right yet," Willy said, his voice almost monotone.

"You can say that again," Mr. Beauregarde snapped. "Look what it's done to my kid!"

"Always goes wrong when we come to the desert," Willy said, rubbing the back of his head. "Always." Suddenly, Violet began to slowly inflate. Maureen widened her eyes and dropped her jaw. Mr. Beauregarde ran over to his daughter as Maureen looked at Willy.

"I'm assuming that's what you were talking about," Maureen said. Willy nodded.

"Violet, what are you doing now? You're blowing up!" Mr. Beauregarde screamed.

"I feel funny!" Violet shouted as her red belt popped off. "What's happening!?"

"You're blowing up like a balloon!" Mr. Beauregarde shouted.

"Like a blueberry," Willy said calmly. "It happens every time. They all become blueberries."

"Call a doctor!"

"Stick her with a pin!"

"She'll pop!"

"You've really done it this time, haven't you, Wonka!" Mr. Beauregarde growled. "I'll break you for this!"

"Oh, well, I'll get it right in the end," Willy said, ignoring Mr. Beauregarde and pulling out his penny whistle.

"Help! Help!" Violet called out as Willy tooted the whistle.

"We've got to get the air out of her!" Mr. Beauregarde shouted, sounding more panicked by the second.

"There's no air in her," Willy said. "That's juice."

"Juice!?" Mr. Beauregarde shouted. An Oompa Loompa approached them and Willy bent down to talk to him.

"Would you roll the young lady down to the juicing room at once, please?" Willy asked. The Oompa Loompa nodded and walked away.

"What for?" Mr. Beauregarde asked.

"For squeezing. She has to be squeezed immediately before she explodes," Willy explained. Mr. Beauregarde's eyes went huge and he dropped his jaw.

"Explodes!?"

"It's a fairly simple operation," Willy said. Maureen looked at Violet, who was now a giant, oval shaped, blue thing. The Oompa Loompas began to sing as they spun Violet around and rolled her about the room.

 _"Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-do_

 _I have another puzzle for you_

 _Oompa Loompa doom-pa-da-dee_

 _If you are wise, you'll listen to me_

 _Gum chewing's fine when it's once in a while_

 _It stops you from smoking and brightens your smile_

 _But it's repulsive, revolting, and wrong_

 _Chewing and chewing all day long_

 _The way that a cow does_

 _Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-da_

 _Given good manners, you will go far_

 _You will live in happiness too_

 _Like the Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-do!"_

One Oompa Loompa took Mr. Beauregarde by the hand and led him through the big metal doors. "I'll get even with you for this, Wonka, if it's the last thing I ever do!" Mr. Beauregarde shouted. From the distance, they could hear him moan, "I got a blueberry for a daughter…"

"Where is fancy bred? In the heart, or in the head?" Willy asked. "Shall we roll on?" A Oompa Loompa handed Willy his cane and he walked ahead, ready to guide the four remaining children to the next rooms.


	11. More Rooms

**Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!  
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 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

They began to go through another corridor in the factory. They were passing a section of wallpaper with stripes of fruit down it when Willy suddenly halted. Maureen tilted her head inquisitively and looked at the wallpaper. "Wait a minute," Willy said, his blue eyes lighting up. "Must show you this. Lickable wallpaper for nursery walls. Lick an orange, it tastes like an orange. Lick a pineapple, it tastes like a pineapple. Go ahead, try it." The ticket winners all clamored over to the nearest fruit stripe and licked the fruit of their choice. Maureen looked over at Laurie before she could lick something.

"I know, I know," Laurie said, rolling her eyes in a typical teenage fashion. "Stay away from the strawberries. That's why I'm going for an orange." Maureen noticed a strange, unfamiliar looking blue fruit that almost resembled a raspberry. She licked it and tasted something that was extremely juicy and sour. She recoiled and scrunched up her face, not expecting the sour flavor. Normally she enjoyed sour candies… but only when she expecting it.

"I got a plum," Mike Teevee said, clearly enjoying the fruit.

"Grandpa, this banana's fantastic! It tastes so real!" Charlie gasped.

"Just stay away from the blueberries," Laurie jokingly said before returning to her orange. Maureen laughed along with her and tried the strange blue fruit again. This time the flavor was much more pleasing to the tongue.

"Try some more!" Willy urged, smiling. "The strawberries taste like strawberries. The snozzberries taste like snozzberries!"

"Snozzberries?" Veruca snorted, turning to Willy. "Who ever heard of a snozzberry?" She tried to return to her orange, but Willy grabbed her chin, leaving her tongue sticking out.

"We are the music makers," he said. "And we are the dreamers of dreams." He let go of the child's face and stood up, motioning for them to follow him. "Come along," he said with a flourish of his cane. "Come along." As Maureen neared him, he seemed to smirk. "I see you found the snozzberries."

"Is that the sour blue raspberry-looking fruit?" Maureen asked. Willy nodded. "How did you know?"

"Your tongue is blue," he told her. Maureen flushed and covered her mouth. "Don't be embarrassed, Maureen. Blue suits you." This only made her flush even more. Why was she getting so flustered when he drew attention towards her?

They were led through various hallways and corridors, each door with a strange label on it. Like 'Candy-Coated Pencils for Sucking in Class' and 'Fragile Egos.' She laughed at the latter room. Her ex-husband would definitely be suited for that room. They entered a room that was marked 'Square Candies that Look Round.' He opened the door and motioned for the crowd to enter the room. "Here we go! Square Candies that Look Round!" Maureen saw tables full of small cubed candies with little faces on them.

"They look completely square to me," Veruca said.

"Same," Mike said, unimpressed with the room. Suddenly the memory hit Maureen. Willy had talked about making such a candy when he was in school. Candies that were square but looked round. He figured it could be a play on words, something only the intelligent could figure out while those with lesser brains struggled to figure out the nature of the candies. She looked at him in awe. When Willy met her gaze, he held up a single finger as if to tell her to keep quiet about the trick behind the candies. Laurie went to get a closer look at the candies, moving towards the left table. The candies on that table kept their eyes on her while the others changed their gaze to look at her. Laurie looked out of the corner of her eye and noticed them.

"OH!" she loudly exclaimed as she looked around. "I get it now!" She moved her head to the other side of the left table, watching as the eyes followed her. She moved to the other side, again watch the eyes follow her.

"Oh!" Charlie said, finally realizing it. "They're square candies that look 'round! Like, around not round."

"I still don't get it," Veruca snorted. All the while, Laurie was still almost playing with the candies, tilting herself from side of side and saying, 'I'm over here… and now I'm here.' Maureen watched in amusement as Laurie played with the candies. The blonde teenager suddenly lost her balance and fell onto her side with a faint squeak. She laughed as she stood up, smiling at the candies.

"Looks like I had too much fun with that," Laurie said, looking sheepishly at her mother and Willy.

"You don't say," Maureen replied with a chuckle. "Willy, perhaps we should leave this room before my daughter hurts herself. She's having way too much fun."

"You can never have too much fun, my dear," Willy said with a smile. "But we should press on. We can't spend all day waiting for the others to understand this room. Come along, everyone." They continued down the corridors, now coming across some rooms that we're as related to candy, such as "Secretarial Poodles" and "Administration Offices." They finally came across a room with a large sign reading, "Library" over the top the door. Willy paused and smiled at the group. "I originally wasn't going to include this room, but then I thought that perhaps it would be a good idea to expose the youth to the wonders of books. It's like television without commercials and more imagination." He opened the door and led the group into the room.

Maureen widened her eyes in amazement. The library was two stories tall with every wall lined with a plethora of books. The bookcases were a faded, antique looking wood with golden decorations on the corners. The upper portion of the library was lined with a wood and gold railing that looked both simple and ornate with the signature Wonka "W" engraved every few feet. Leading up to the second floor was a wooden spiral staircase with a brass banister. The ceiling of the room was painted with a beautiful mural of the sky, giving the library a feel of being outdoors. However, it was the center of the room that caught Maureen's attention the most.

In the center of this grand library was an absolutely beautiful Steinway and Sons piano. A model D-274 by the looks of it.

"Mum," Laurie whispered, tugging at Maureen's hand. "He has a Steinway."

"I know," Maureen whispered back. Willy motioned for all of the tourists to explore the library.

"You may explore as you please. I only ask that my books remain intact," Willy said. Maureen wanted to read the books... but the piano called her. She looked at the beautiful grand piano, the lid propped up on the short stick.

"You actually have a Steinway," Maureen laughed with a smile.

"It's a good piano," Willy said as he looked at it. "This was the other reason I added the library to the tour at the last minute. I figured you'd appreciate it."

"It's so beautiful," Laurie added. "Can I touch it? I'm not allowed to touch mum's."

"Why not?" Willy asked.

"Because my piano cost about as much as my house and I rely heavily on it for my job," Maureen said, ruffling Laurie's blonde hair. She looked up with Willy and asked, "Are you fine with her playing it?"

"I don't see why not," he said with a smile. Laurie's face lit up and she let out a little happy squeal. She sat down at the bench and adjusted it for her height. She took a breath and straightened her back, arching her wrists into the proper position, just as Maureen had taught her. She immediately started to play 'In the Hall of the Mountain King.' The creeping, staccato melody was one that even those untrained in music could recognize. Maureen could feel the sound of the piano as it resonated throughout the large library. The acoustics were fantastic. Suddenly, Laurie hit a wrong note and groaned. She tried to replay the section and messed up a second time. She sighed and got up.

"The music gods are not happy with me, apparently," she said with an embarrassed laugh. "This is why I chose flute over piano."

"May I?" Maureen asked, gesturing to the piano. Willy smiled and nodded.

"Of course," he said. "You are the professional, after all. The stage is yours, Doctor Traynor." Maureen laughed as she sat down and adjusted the piano bench to her liking. It took her longer to find the right spot than Laurie. After all, Maureen was very particular about her bench height.

* * *

Willy stood with Laurie as Maureen prepared herself to play his piano. She took a breath and began to play the same piece Laurie was trying to play earlier. "Okay, I see how it is," Laurie said with crossed arms and a teasing smile. Maureen's movements were more fluid that her daughters; her fingers seemed to float and dance across the keys. When she got to the portion of the piece that Laurie was having trouble with, she played flawlessly and without hesitation. In fact, she was speeding up the piece. Willy looked at Maureen's face. She was completely focused and invested in her music. It was as if nothing else was around her; only her and the piano.

When she finished, she seemed frozen until she moved her hands from the piano. Willy clapped, as did Laurie. He heard some of the adults clapping as well. They all seemed to be watching from different points in the library. None of the children seemed interested, save for Laurie and Charlie. Charlie was watching Maureen with a bright light of amazement in his eyes. Willy knew that this boy was definitely another strong candidate. Perhaps he could persuade Laurie and Charlie to work together. Knowing the two of them, it wouldn't be that hard. "Any requests?" Maureen asked.

"Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2," Laurie said. Maureen narrowed her eyes and deadpanned.

"Not when I'm not warmed up," Maureen said.

"Fur Elise, then," Laurie said. Maureen nodded and turned to the piano. Her fingers gracefully danced as she played the first, very well known notes of the Beethoven piece. She played the sixteenth note patterns smoothly and without hesitation. Willy had played the piece a quite a few times in here, but it had never sounded like this. When Maureen played, it was as if the music was coming to life. The way her music echoed off the library walls sounded almost magical. She finished the short piece and let out a wistful sigh. He suddenly saw something click in her brain.

"Hold on," Maureen said. "Before I get any more requests, I want to try something." Suddenly, she began to play a familiar tune. One of Willy's own creation. She was playing 'Pure Imagination' from complete memory... and she was doing a pretty good job.

"Really?" Willy asked as she played. Maureen started laughing, not stopping for a single second. "You heard that one time less than three hours ago and you can already play it near perfectly?"

"Not to mention she's doing a jazz ballad arrangement," Laurie added. "You go, mum." Willy had to admit that her arrangement was incredible. It also allowed her to improvise a little and not be exactly right as far as the melody was concerned. Maureen kept laughing as she played the piece, knowing she was teasing Willy. She ended the piece with a scalar flourish as befitting of a jazzier ballad. "Wait... you need to do something by Rachmaninoff. Just because of earlier." Maureen thought for a moment and then looked at Laurie with a smile

"Etude-Tableaux Op. 39 No. 9 in D Major," the two said simultaneously. Maureen started to play the dramatic and intense, yet beautiful piece. He could almost hear a regal anti-hero riding into the room as she played the sharp downbeats.

"Hey, Mrs. Teevee!" Laurie called out. Mrs. Teevee was currently reading one of Willy's books of poetry up on the second floor. The Arizonan woman looked down with an arched brown. "This is what a Rachmaninoff piece sounds like. Nothing like Mozart. At all." Maureen let out a loud laugh and nearly faltered at the piano. Her hands moved swiftly and gracefully. More so now than when he knew her in school. Maureen truly had grown into an amazing woman. She finished the piece and stood up, flexing her wrist and stretching it.

"I think I've kept everyone here long enough," Maureen said, blushing slightly. "Besides, there's the rest of the factory to go see." Willy nodded and watched as Maureen closed the cover of the piano keys and lowered the cover. He normally kept it on short stick, but he trusted Maureen knew what was best for the piano.

"You're right," Willy said. "Come along, everyone. I have so many more rooms to show all of you." One by one, the children and adults filed out of the library. They waited outside while Willy shut the ornate wooden door. He made his way down the corridors, knowing exactly what rooms to go to next.


	12. Fizzy Drinks, Lollies, and Geese

**I apologize for the delay, but between midterms, marching band, and trying to figure out how to implement Veruca's song, I had a lot of trouble writing and finding time to write.** **Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"Something very unusual in here," Willy said as they continued through the corridors. He walked through a strangely shaped archway. The room had black walls and a silver and red machine of some sort in the center of the room. When Maureen looked up, she saw what appeared to be a metal lattice ascending towards the top of the tall room with a silver fan spinning round and round at the top. The room itself was filled with bubbles. Bottles of unknown liquids lined the walls, varying in colors and size.

Maureen watched as Laurie's grey eyes lit up as she started to walk around the room, trying to pop as many bubbles as possible. Ever since she was a child, Laurie could never resist the temptation of bubbles. "Bubbles, bubbles everywhere! But not a drop to drink… yet," Willy said, turning around as he motioned to the room.

"What's it making, Mr. Wonka?" Charlie asked.

"Fizzy lifting drinks," Willy said. "They fill you up with gas, and the gas is so terrifically lifting that it lifts you right off the ground like a balloon." Veruca looked up at the column of metal lattice reaching to the top of the ceiling. Maureen assumed that this was one of the many columns that could be seen outside the factory.

"Oh, isn't it high?" Veruca gasped. "Gosh!" Maureen looked to her left to see Laurie still chasing bubbles. She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"But I daren't sell it yet," Willy said. "It's still too powerful."

"Come on, let us try some!" Mike said. "Please!?

"Don't be mean," Veruca whined.

"No, no, no. Absolutely not. There'd be children floating around all over the place," Willy said, his voice absolutely firm. He walked back towards the doorway and motioned for everyone to follow him. "Come along now; don't hang about. You're going to be wild about this next room." Everyone began to leave the room filled with bubbles. Maureen started to head out, but noticed Laurie still playing with the bubbles.

"Laurie," Maureen called out. The teenager looked up at her mother with a frown and pouted lip.

"But bubbles!" Laurie replied with wide eyes.

"Laurie…" Maureen repeated a little more firmly. Laurie let out a mix of a sigh and a groan.

"Fine…" the teenager said as she left the room with her mother. They walked behind Willy as he made his way confidently down the corridors. He came to a room marked, 'Luminous Lollies for in Bed at Night.' Maureen widened her eyes and dropped her jaw. She remembered Willy attempting to work on such a thing during their final year at Winton Academy. He never got it to work that well. All the lollies would ever do was glow very faintly. They were never bright enough for Willy Wonka.

"These have been in progress for many years now," Willy said as he opened up the room. The lights in the room were on at the moment, so the multicolored lollies weren't glowing yet. The lollies sat in what looked like various trees and bushes. It looked reminiscent of a greenhouse. "Luminous Lollies!"

"But they aren't glowing!" Veruca said, looking around the room.

"But they will," Willy said, placing his hand on the light switch. He flicked the lights off and the room was at once lit up. Lollies of every color glowed as bright as Christmas lights. Maureen smiled and dropped her jaw. Looking around the room. The kids let out gasps and sounds of awe.

"You finally got it right…" Maureen whispered more to herself than anyone.

"It only took twenty years." Maureen turned around and saw Willy standing behind her, looking at the yellow glowing lollipop in front of her. A mix of every color in the rainbow illuminated the chocolatier's face, making his eyes sparkle in a way reminiscent of the lollipops. The rainbow of color on his face almost seemed to fit his personality and his expression perfectly. "Every time I look at them they seem more and more beautiful."

"Definitely more breathtaking than the originals," she said with a laugh. "Do they make a person's tongue glow?"

"Not as much as they used to," Willy said. "The effect is less tame and only last for a few hours now. It used to last for days. One Oompa-Loompa had a glowing purple tongue for two months in the early phases."

"Oh wow," Maureen said, turning to look at a blue lollipop. "What flavor are the blue ones?"

"Try on and find out," Willy replied with a smile. He plucked the blue lollipop in front of her and handed it to her. Maureen took it and licked it. The taste of blueberries immediately filled her mouth and she let out a faint smile.

"I'm not going to blow up now, am I?" she asked.

"No," Willy assured her, laughing. "I only had that problem with the gum. Every other blueberry thing is fine." Maureen rolled her eyes and continued to suck on the lollipop. Willy definitely had a way with candy. Something suddenly flashed in his eyes and he turned around. "Laurie! The pink ones are strawberry!"

"Thank you!" Laurie called back. She took a green one and began to suck on in.

"Thanks for thinking of her," Maureen said. Willy merely shrugged and smiled.

"She's a special girl," Willy said. "It doesn't take much to see that."

"I want to wring her neck sometimes," Maureen said. "But I couldn't imagine life without her." She suddenly heard Willy start laughing. She arched an eyebrow and asked, "What is it?"

"The glowing's started," he said. Maureen was thankful that the darkness was hiding her blush. She extended her tongue and looked down, seeing the blue glow emanating from her tongue. She quickly retracted her tongue and held back laughter. "I told you blue was a good color on you."

"Shut up," Maureen mumbled.

"I couldn't quite hear that," Willy said. "I'm a trifle deaf in one ear now." Maureen narrowed her eyes while Willy laughed. "Come along everyone," he called out. "We best press on. I can't wait to show you all the next room." He turned the lights back on and the beautiful luminescence ceased. The tourists all filed out of the room behind Willy, who started to guide them once more down the corridors of the factory. As they got closer to another room, Maureen could hear the honking of geese. She furrowed her brow and looked over at Willy, who merely let out a faint, playful smirk and continued walking silently. When they entered the room, Maureen paused and widened her eyes.

Those were some bloody gigantic geese.

Each goose sat in a nest near the top of the room, with some sort of contraption sitting beneath each nest. Tables full of orange wrapping paper lined the center of the room, with Oompa Loompas working on shining what appeared to be golden eggs. Colorful boxes sat along the lavender walls, wrapped for what Maureen probably assumed would be holiday gifts.

"I know what you're thinking: They can't be doing what they're doing," Willy said, leaning against his cane. "But they are. They have to. I haven't met the Oompa Loompa yet who could do it. These are the geese that lay the golden eggs. As you can see, they're larger than ordinary geese. As a matter of fact, they're quadruple size geese which produce octuple size eggs. They're laying overtime right now for Easter."

"But Easter's over!" Mike practically shouted. Willy quickly covered Mike's mouth with his hand.

"Sssh," he whispered. "They don't know that. I'm trying to get ahead for next year."

"Those are some bloody big geese," Laurie said. She turned to Willy and tilted her head slightly to the side. "How did you even get geese that big?"

"Secret of the trade," Willy replied.

"What happens if the drop one of those eggs, Wonka?" Mr. Salt asked.

"An omelet fit for a king, sir," Willy replied.

"Are they chocolate eggs?" Veruca asked.

" _Golden_ chocolate eggs," Willy corrected. "That's a great delicacy. But I wouldn't get to close," he said as he saw some of the tourists start to approach the geese swinging his cane to stop them, "The geese are very temperamental. That's why we have the Eggdicator."

"Eggdi-what?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"Is that the thing under the geese?" Laurie asked.

"Yes," Willy said. "The Eggdicator can tell the difference between a good egg and a bad egg. If it's a good egg, it's shined up and shipped out all over the world." Maureen watched as one egg was guided down from the nest to the Eggdicator. It landed on the purple, soft scale and the meter swung to 'Good' and dinged. An Oompa Loompa took the egg into a padded gold cart and walk off with it. "But if it's a bad egg…" Willy made a thumbs down motion as they watched another nest. Another egg was guided down from a different nest and landed on the Eggdicator. The machine let out a loud honking sound and the door below the egg gave way, sending the egg into the abyssal chute. "Down the chute."

"It's an educated Eggdicator," Grandpa Joe said.

"It's a lot of nonsense," Mr. Salt snorted. Willy leaned a little closer to Mr. Salt.

"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men," Willy softly sung.

"Hey, Daddy, I want a golden goose," Veruca said, walking closer to an Oompa Loompa, who was wrapping up a golden egg.

"Here we go again," Laurie and Charlie said at the same time. The two exchanged shocked glances and then smiled at each other, laughing at the coincidence.

"All right, sweetheart, all right. Daddy'll get you a golden goose as soon as we get home," Mr. Salt said. This answer apparently didn't satisfy Veruca, who began to pout like the little brat she was.

"No, I want one of those!" Veruca whined. Mr. Salt sighed and took out his checkbook.

"Wonka, how much do you want for the golden goose?" he asked.

"They're not for sale," Willy replied. Mr. Salt seemed astounded that he was being told no. Like father, like daughter, apparently.

"Name your prince," he said.

"She can't have one," Willy said.

"Who says I can't?" Veruca snapped, glaring at Willy.

"The man with the funny hat," Mr. Salt said.

"I think you mean the man with the awesome hat," Laurie interjected. "Look, just accept that you can't have one and move on. You don't always get what you want."

"I want one!" Veruca shouted. "I want a golden goose! Gooses! Geeses! I want my geese to lay gold eggs for Easter."

"It will, sweetheart," Mr. Salt assured her. Maureen rolled her eyes at his horrible parenting.

"At least a hundred a day!" Veruca added.

"Anything you say," Mr. Salt replied.

"And by the way…" Veruca continued. Maureen shook her head and sighed. What else could this rich young girl possibly want? " _I want a feast_."

"You ate before you came," Mr. Salt pointed out.

" _I want a bean feast,"_ Veruca sang. " _Cream buns and doughnuts and fruitcake with no nuts. So good you could go nuts!"_

"You can have all those things when you get home," Mr. Salt said.

"No now!" Veruca wailed. " _I want a ball  
I want a party  
Pink macaroons and a million balloons  
And performing baboons and ...  
Give it to me  
Now!_

 _I want the world_  
 _I want the whole world_  
 _I want to lock it all up in my pocket_  
 _It's my bar of chocolate_  
 _Give it to me_  
 _Now!_

 _I want today_  
 _I want tomorrow_  
 _I want to wear 'em like braids in my hair_  
 _And I don't want to share 'em_."

Veruca shook her hands in the air for a few moments before appearing to calm down. The entire time she was singing, she seemed to be getting more and more annoyed. Maureen didn't quite understand the spontaneous singing from Veruca, but she wasn't going to pay much attention to that at the moment.

" _I want a party with room fulls of laughter  
Ten thousand tons of ice cream  
And if I don't get the things I am after  
I'm going to scream!"_ Veruca let out a scream and tossed some of the orange shrink wrap around Willy. She proceeded to have a full-out tantrum. She kicked over boxes, punched baskets of ribbons, and then pushed one of the golden carts into a stack of what appeared to be boxes ready for shipping. Willy covered his face with his hand, probably thinking of the mess he's have to clean up later. Maureen put a hand on his shoulder and patted it slightly. Willy placed his other hand on top of hers, as if to say he was grateful for the comfort. Around them, Oompa Loompas scrambled to get the bratty girl to stop trashing the room.

" _I want the works  
I want the whole works  
Presents and prizes and sweets and surprises  
Of all shapes and sizes  
And now  
Don't care how  
I want it now,"_ Veruca sang as she stepped up onto one of the Eggdicators. " _Don't care how, I want it now!_ " The Eggdicator let out a loud honking sound as the doors gave way, sending Veruca herself down the garbage chute. Maureen widened her eyes and covered her mouth, looking from the Eggdicator to Willy.

"She may be a brat, but she has mad improvisation skills," Laurie commented after a long period of silence. As shocked as Maureen was at the moment, she couldn't help but think that Laurie was right.

"She was a bad egg," Willy commented, shaking his head.

"Um…" Mr. Salt said, coming up Willy. "Where's she gone?"

"Where all other bad eggs go," Willy said. "Down the garbage chute."

"The garbage chute," Mr. Salt echoed, laughing nervously. "Where does it lead to?"

"To the furnace," Willy answered. Maureen widened her grey eyes and dropped her jaw. He didn't mention that the garbage went to the furnace. Mr. Salt started nervous-laughing again, though his eyes clearly held fear.

"To the furnace. She'll be sizzled like a sausage," Mr. Salt said.

"Well not necessarily," Willy said. "She could be stuck just inside the tube."

"Inside the…" Mr. Salt laughed and then began to go red-faced and panicky. "Hold on! Veruca, sweetheart, Daddy's coming!" he shouted as he ran over to the Eggdicator and dived in headfirst. The machine honked, signaling that Mr. Salt was also a bad egg. Willy sighed and shook his head.

"There's going to be a lot of garbage today," he said with a frown.

"Mr. Salt finally got what he wanted," Grandpa Joe said.

"What's that?" Charlie asked.

"Veruca went first," Grandpa Joe answered. Laurie smiled and started uncontrollably giggling.

"Willy, they won't _actually_ be burned in the furnace, will they?" Maureen asked, watching her daughter giggle beyond reasoning. Willy stopped and pondered for a second.

"Well," Willy said. "I think that furnace is lit only every other day, so they have a good sporting chance, haven't they?"

"You _think_?" Maureen asked incredulously. The Oompa Loompa's then congregated around the room and began to sing.

 _"Oompa Loompa doompadee doo  
I've got another puzzle for you  
Oompa Loompa doompadah dee  
If you are wise you will listen to me_

 _Who do you blame when your kid is a brat_  
 _Pampered and spoiled like a Siamese cat?_  
 _Blaming the kids is a lion of shame_  
 _You know exactly who's to blame:_  
 _The mother and the father!_

 _Oompa Loompa doompadee dah_  
 _If you're not spoiled then you will go far_  
 _You will live in happiness too_  
 _Like the Oompa Loompa doompadee do._ "

Willy started to walk to the other side of the room, leading the remaining six tourists out of the Geese Room.

"I don't understand it," Willy said. "The children are disappearing like rabbits. Well, we still have each other. Shall we press on?"

"Mr. Wonka," Mrs. Teevee said. "Can't we sit down for a minute? The pace is killing me."

"My dear lady, transportation has already been arranged," Mr. Wonka said. Maureen followed the chocolatier out of the room, unaware of what the arranged transportation was.


	13. Hsawaknow and the TV Room

**Linkwonka88: I'm a tuba player too! All 5' 6" and 100 pounds of me! #aintnoloveliketubalove. Anyway, I rushed to update this story since I'm in the home stretch of the film.** **Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

When Maureen stepped into the hallway, she saw Oompa Loompa filling up various orifices of what looked like a strange vehicle of some sort. She tilted her head to the side as she looked at it. It seemed that she had finally found something in the factory that she could never recall Willy planning. "I have no idea what this is," Laurie said, looking up at the vehicle. "But it looks cool."

"Behold!" Willy said, motioning to the vehicle. "The Wonkamobile. A thing of beauty is a joy forever. Places, please, the dance is about to begin. Better grab a seat, they're going fast." Willy began to climb up to the top of the Wonkamobile.

"Mr. Wonka, what's that they're filling it up with?" Grandpa Joe asked.

"Oh, ginger ale, ginger pop, ginger beer, beer bubbles, bubble-ade, bubble cola, double cola, double bubble burp-a-cola, and all the crazy carbonated stuff that tickles your nose," Willy answered as he climbed up the Wonkamobile. "Few people realize what tremendous power there is in one of those things."

"Sorry I asked," Grandpa Joe muttered. Laurie bounced over to the back of the vehicle, where she sat next to Charlie. Maureen looked around the Wonkamobile and didn't see any spare seating.

"Maureen." She looked up and saw Willy leaning down with an extended hand. She took his hand and climbed up to the top of the Wonkamobile, taking the seat next to Willy. "Everybody set?" Willy asked, looking behind him.

"Is it gonna go fast, Grandpa?" Charlie asked.

"It should, Charlie," Grandpa Joe responded. "It's got more gas in it than a politician."

"Amen to that," Laurie added with a laugh. Maureen shook her head and laughed at Laurie's comment.

"Now hold on tight. I'm gonna really open her up this time and see what she can do," Willy said as he began to crank and pull various levers. The Wonkamobile began to slowly move forward. "Swifter than eagles! Stronger than lions!" the Chocolatier shouted. Maureen looked down and saw that white foam was beginning to come out of the machine. The spout at the top basically explode and suddenly Maureen and Willy were covered with the white foam. She let out a faint shriek as the cold, white foam covered her. Below, she could hear Laurie laughing hysterically.

"There must be a leak in the distilling tube," Willy said. The Teevee's screamed as a large opening in front of them flooded the front with white foam. Then, of course, Willy began to sing.

" _Martha! Martha!_

 _Du entschwandest, und mein Glück_

 _Nahmst Du mit Dir;_

 _Gib mir wieder, was Du fandest,_

 _Oder theile es mit mir,"_ the eccentric man sung.

"I know that!" Laurie shouted. " _Ach so fromm, ach so traut_ from Friedrich von Flotow's _Martha_!"

"Good job, Laurie!" Maureen shouted back. Next to her, Willy was laughing. Maureen cleared some of the foam-soaked hair from her face to see better. She didn't know why, but she had a large grin plastered to her face that she couldn't get rid of. She looked to her left and Willy smiling and laughing next to her.

"I'm sending you the cleaning bill Mr. Wonka!" Mrs. Teevee shouted. They approached another machine. When they went through it, Maureen felt herself get suddenly cleaned and dried. It was almost magic. "I'm dry cleaned!"

"What did we just go through?" Laurie asked.

"Hsawaknow," Willy said as he pulled the lever in front of him.

"Is that Japanese?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"No," Willy replied. "That's 'Wonkawash' spelled backwards. That's it, ladies and gentlemen. The journey is over." He began to climb down from the machine. When he reached the ground, Maureen started to climb down. Willy helped guide her down the side of the machine by gently placing his hand on her waist. She felt herself start to blush for reasons she wasn't entirely sure of.

"Finest bath I've had in twenty years," Grandpa Joe said. Maureen felt herself laugh at Grandpa Joe's comment.

"Let's do it again, Mr. Wonka!" Charlie said.

"Can we?" Laurie asked. "That was awesome!"

"You mean that's as far as it goes?" Mrs. Teevee asked with a slightly snooty look on her face.

"Couldn't we have walked?" Mike asked.

"If the Good Lord had intended us to walk, he wouldn't have invented roller skates," Willy said.

"Right on!" Maureen and Laurie said at the same time as they followed Willy.

"Now would you all please put these on," Willy said, taking bright white suits and goggles off of a coatrack by the next room. He handed a suit to each ticket winner and their parent. "We have to be very careful. There's dangerous stuff inside." The tourists spread out a bit so that they could put on the jumpsuits. It didn't take too long for Maureen to get the jumpsuit itself on. Her major problem was getting her long blonde hair to stay in the hood of the jumpsuit. As she zipped up the front, she heard a loud bang and what sounded like a shriek from Laurie.

"Are you alright!?" Maureen called out.

"I'm good!" Laurie shouted back. "Just another example of my amazing coordination!" Maureen laughed and shook her head. She tried to tuck the last few strands of her hair into her hood as she walked back towards the door to the next room. She saw Willy all suited up with the goggles hanging around his neck. On top of his head sat the brown top hat. Maureen shook her head.

"What?" Willy asked.

"Of course you're still wearing the hat," Maureen said. Willy rolled his eyes and took a step towards Maureen. He tucked a few more loose strands of her hair into the hood of the jumpsuit. "And of course I missed a few strands of hair." Willy chuckled as he let his hand rest on her shoulder. For a moment, Maureen saw something change in his expression. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said. "Just figured out something, is all." A few seconds later, Laurie bounced up to the two, smiling her signature Laurie smile.

"Everyone ready?" Willy asked. He saw everyone nod and then he opened the door to the next room. Maureen was at once greeted with a bright white light. Everything in this room was completely white, save for some black camera lenses and red buttons. Oompa Loompa's clad in the same white jumpsuits tinkered with a large white camera and a desk full of electronic equipment. "Wonkavision. My very latest and greatest invention."

"It's television!" Mike shouted. Maureen could practically feel Laurie rolling her eyes.

"Uh, it's Wonkavision," Willy corrected. "Now I suppose you all know how ordinary television works. You photograph something and-" But Willy didn't get to finish what he was going to say. Mike had decided to so-rudely interrupt Willy and display what he thought was intelligence.

"Sure, I do. You photograph something, and then the photograph is split up into millions of tiny pieces, and they go whizzing through the air down to your TV set where they're all put together again in the right order," Mike explained almost smugly.

"Rude…" Laurie muttered.

"You should open your mouth a little wider when you speak," Willy said, leaning down towards Mike. So I said to myself, 'If they can do it with a photograph, why can't I do it with a bar of chocolate?'" Maureen watched as four Oompa Loompas carried a large bar of chocolate to the center of the room. "I shall now send this chocolate bar from one end of the room to the other. It has to be big because whenever you transmit something by television, it always ends up smaller on the other end. Goggles on, please." Maureen placed the goggles over her eyes, rendering her world mostly dark. She could see a little bit out of the shaded opening in the goggles. Willy picked up a button and clicked it. "Light, camera, action!" There was a bright flash in the room and Mrs. Teevee scream.

"Geez, lady. You're fine!" Laurie snapped.

"You can remove your goggles," Willy said.

"Where's the chocolate?" Charlie asked as he took off the goggles. Maureen removed her and rested them around her neck.

"It's flying over our heads in a million pieces," Willy said, motioning upwards with his cane. Above them were flurries of various colors. He led them to a white television set and began to press an assortment of buttons. "Now watch the screen." Maureen crouched down to get a better look at the television. "Here it comes." Maureen watched as the chocolate bar slowly began to appear on the screen of the television. She widened her eyes in amazement. How was he able to do that!? "There it is." Willy turned to Mike with a smile. "Take it."

"How can you take it?" Mike asked. "It's just a picture."

"All right," Willy said. He motioned to Charlie and said, "You take it." Charlie took a step up and reached into the television. He was able to grab the chocolate bar and take it out of the television.

"It's real!" Charlie gasped.

"Taste it! It's delicious. It's just gotten smaller, that's all," Willy urged. Charlie quickly opened up the bar of chocolate and took a bite out of the corner.

"It's perfect!" Charlie said with a smile. He broke off a part of it and handed it to Laurie. She took the square of candy and ate a bite, her eyes going wide with enjoyment.

"It's amazing!" Laurie said.

"It's unbelievable," Mrs. Teevee gasped.

"It's a miracle!" Grandpa Joe shouted.

"It's a TV dinner," Mike said.

"It's Wonkavision," Willy said. Maureen smiled in awe and looked up at her old friend.

"How did you do that?" Maureen asked. Willy opened his mouth, as if to answer her question, but Maureen held up a hand. "Wait. No. Don't tell me. I want it to stay magical." Willy smiled and nodded.

"It could change the world," Grandpa Joe said.

"Mr. Wonka, can you send other things?" Mike asked. "Not just chocolate I mean."

"Anything you like," Willy said.

"Like whole watermelons!" Laurie said. "Edible whole watermelons." Maureen turned to her daughter and arched an eyebrow.

"As opposed to non-edible watermelons?" Maureen asked.

"I mean, like, bite-sized entire watermelons," Laurie said. "They would be like watermelon jelly-beans, except not jelly-beans, but whole mini watermelons."

"So people would eat the rind too?" Maureen asked. Laurie paused and seemed to ponder this and shrugged.

"I guess there could be rind-free versions if people really wanted it," the teenage girl said. Willy seemed to be enjoying the entire conversation between Maureen and Laurie.

"What about people?" Mike suddenly asked.

"People?" Willy asked. He seemed to pause and think for a moment. "I don't really know. I suppose I could. Yes, I'm sure I could. I'm pretty sure I could. But it might have some messy results." Suddenly Mike ran up to the platform in front of the camera and took the trigger in his hand.

"Look at me! I'm going to be the first person in the world to be sent by television!" Mike shouted.

"Mike, get away from that thing!" Mrs. Teevee shrieked.

"Stop, don't, come back," Willy muttered with absolutely no enthusiasm. Maureen understood why he used such a tone; it wasn't as if Mike was actually going to listen.

"Lights, camera, action!" Mike shouted. Everyone rushed to cover their eyes. Maureen moved her arm to cover her face, seeing the bright flash out of the corner of her eye.

"Shit!" she heard Laurie shouted.

"MIKE!" Mrs. Teevee screamed. Maureen ran to Laurie, who was covering her eyes with one arm and holding her head with the other, kneeling on the white floor. "Where are you!?"

"I didn't cover my eyes fast enough," Laurie said, grimacing.

"He's up there, in a million pieces!" Grandpa Joe said, pointing up. Laurie uncovered her eyes and blinked furiously, seeming extremely dazed.

"My head hurts and I literally cannot see right now," Laurie said. Maureen could feel her shaking in her arms. Willy came up to the two and crouched down beside Maureen and Laurie. Willy tilted Laurie's head up and looked into her eyes, which were darting back and forth.

"Mike! Where are you?" Mrs. Teevee shouted.

"No good shouting up there. Watch the screen," Willy said. He turned to Laurie and waved a hand in front of her face. "Can you see anything?" Willy asked. Laurie shook her head. "Is your vision dark or full of bright spots?"

"Bright spots," Laurie said.

"Stay calm, okay?" Willy told her. "It's more than likely temporary. It's happened to me and the Oompa Loompas on more than one occasion." Laurie gulped and nodded, not appearing to look at anything.

"MIKE! Why's he taking so long?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"A million pieces take a long time to put together," Charlie said. "Mr. Wonka, is Laurie going to be okay?"

"She should be," Willy said. He turned back to Laurie and said, "Let me know if your vision doesn't come back in a few minutes. I'll have the Oompa Loompa's check you out then, all right?"

"Okay?" Laurie said. Willy ran up to the controls for the television and began to press various buttons.

"Where are they?" Mrs. Teevee murmured, sounding panicked.

"There's definitely something coming through," Willy said.

"Is it Mike?" Mrs. Teevee asked.

"Well, it's hard to tell," Willy said. "But I…" Suddenly the tiny image of Mike appeared on the television screen and Mrs. Teevee let out a loud wail.

"Our little group is getting smaller by the second," Grandpa Joe said. Maureen had to silently agree with the old man.

"Hey, look at me, everybody!" Mike shouted. "I'm the first person in the world to be sent by television."

"I can't look at you because you basically temporarily blinded me," Laurie snapped. Maureen helped Laurie stand up. She walked her over to a nearby wall that Laurie immediately leaned against.

"Wow, what a wild trip that was," Mike said as he climbed out of the television set. "It's the greatest thing that's ever happened to me. Am I coming in clear? Hey, Mom, I said, 'Am I coming in clear?'"

"Great, he's completely unharmed," Willy said, sounding relieved.

"You call that unharmed?" Mrs. Teevee asked incredulously.

"Considering it doesn't sound like he's in half, then yes," Laurie said.

"Wow that was something. Can I do it again?" Mike asked.

"No!" Mrs. Teevee shrieked. "There'll be nothing left."

"Don't worry about a thing, Mom; I feel fine," Mike said. "I'm famous. I'm a TV star. Wait 'til the kids back home hear about this."

"Is this kid for real?" Laurie asked, arching an eyebrow. She was still blinking repeatedly and not focusing on any one thing.

"Nobody's gonna hear about this," Mrs. Teevee said. She picked up Mike with two fingers and held him by the scruff of the jumpsuit.

"Where are you taking me?" Mike asked. "I don't want to go in there!" Mrs. Teevee then proceeded to put Mike in her purse. Willy waved a little into the opening.

"Well?" Mrs. Teevee asked, holding up her purse to Willy.

"Well, fortunately small boys are extremely springy and elastic," Willy said, taking the purse and carelessly swinging it around about. Maureen couldn't really feel sorry for the boy; this was all because of his own stupidity. "So I think we'll put him in my special taffy-pulling machine. That should do the trick."

"Taffy?" Mrs. Teevee asked breathlessly. Willy walked up to an Oompa Loompa and handed the purse to him.

"To the taffy-pulling room. You'll find the boy in his mother's purse. But be extremely careful," Willy instructed the orange-faced man. The Oompa Loompa stood on his toes to whisper something into Willy's ear. "No, no. I won't hold you responsible." Suddenly, Mrs. Teevee fainted and was caught by Grandpa Joe. "And now, my dearest lady, it's time to say goodbye." Mrs. Teevee let out a moan, but Willy shushed her. "No, no. Don't speak. For some moments in life, there are no words. Run along now." She was given to a pair of Oompa Loompas, who began to drag her out of the room. "Adieu, adieu, parting is such sweet sorrow." The Oompa Loompas began to congregate and sing their little song once more.

" _Oompa, Loompa, doom-pa-dee-do  
I have another puzzle for you  
Oompa, Loompa, doom-pa-da-dee  
If you are wise, you'll listen tome_

 _What do you get from a glut of TV?  
A pain in the neck and an IQ of three  
Why don't you try simply reading a book?  
Or can you just not bear to look?_

 _You'll get no...you'll get no...you'll get no commercials_

 _Oompa, Loompa, doom-pa-dee-da  
If you're not greedy, you will go far  
You will live in happiness too  
Like the Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-do."_ The Oompa Loompas then went back to work in the room.

"Please tell me the next song isn't going to be about me?" Laurie moaned. "I can already hear it… _Oompa Loompa doom-pa-de-do, Laurie's a klutz and an idiot too..."_

"No, no, dear girl," Willy said with a laugh. "Is your vision any better?"

"My head hurts less but I still can't see anything other than bright spots," Laurie said. Willy bit his lower lip and nodded. He motioned for an Oompa Loompa to come over.

"Take Dr. Traynor and her daughter to the nearest room and check out her eyes. If there isn't improvement within five minutes, have Laurie take the Eye Candy," Willy said. The Oompa Loompa nodded and took Laurie's hand. "Come to my office when everything is settle."

"Thank you, Willy," Maureen said. She turned around quickly to follow her daughter. She could only pray that Laurie would be okay. Though if the Eye Candy did what she thought it would, then Maureen knew she didn't need to be too worried.


	14. The Great Glass Wonkavator

**See? Look how much I can get done when I have a free weekend for once. This is the end of the film portion of the story, but it's nowhere near the end. I'll start taking chapter ideas from you all, so let me know what you want to see.**

 **Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Once the Traynors had shed their television room jumpsuits, they were led to the nearest room. It was dimly lit and had some miniature medical supplies hanging around the room. Perhaps this was a Oompa Loompa doctor's office. It made sense to have it by the television room. "Take a seat over here," the Oompa Loompa said, motioning to a nearby coffee table. Maureen led her daughter to the table and sat her down. He took out a small flashlight and turned it on. "Let me know if you see brightness." Laurie nodded and tried to keep her eyes open. Maureen could already see how bloodshot they were. The Oompa Loompa shined the light into Laurie's eyes, probably checking out her pupils. "Anything?"

"It gets a little brighter sometimes, but I can't really make anything out. The spots are gone, but now everything is just really blurry," Laurie said.

"What can you make out?" the Oompa Loompa asked.

"Mostly just colors. No shapes at all," she replied. The Oompa Loompa nodded and walked over to a cabinet. He took out a small, blue orb-shaped candy and a pair of sunglasses.

"Mr. Wonka was right," he said. "I'm pretty sure that this is just a corneal flash burn. Take the Eye Candy and then wear sunglasses for the next few days while your eyes heal. The candy will help your vision, but it won't completely heal your eye. Mr. Wonka is still working on that." Laurie took the blue candy and ate it. She smiled as she swallow it.

"Of course it's delicious," Laurie said with a faint laugh. Maureen couldn't help but laugh with her. Suddenly Laurie widened her eyes and gasped. "Oh my god! Shapes! I can see shapes! This stuff is awesome! Why hasn't he sold any yet?"

"It's doesn't do enough for him, apparently," the Oompa Loompa replied. "Like I said, it won't heal your eyes, but it will restore your vision." Laurie nodded and smiled. "What can you make out now?"

"Your face, my mum's face, the room, that weird lamp thing over there…"

"So basically everything in this room?" Maureen asked. Laurie nodded and put on the sunglasses. "So is she good to go then?"

"Pretty much," the Oompa Loompa said. "Just wear the sunglasses for a few days and you'll be fine."

"Thank you," Maureen said with a smile. "What's your name?"

"Rusty," he said. "At least, my English name is Rusty. Even Mr. Wonka has trouble pronouncing Loompish names."

"Well thank you, Rusty," Maureen said. "How do we get to Mr. Wonka's office?"

"Straight down the hallway, take the third left, and then you should see his door," Rusty told them.

"Thank you!" Laurie said, hopping up from the coffee table. The three walked over to the door and exited the room. "By the way, you guys have mad improve skill."

"Who said we improvised?" Rusty said with a knowing smile. He turned around and headed back towards the television room, leaving behind two confused humans. Laurie's eyes were wide as she turned to her mother.

"Now I'm concerned," Laurie said. Maureen only nodded silently, before turning around and walking down the hallway. "I wonder how the other kids are doing. I mean, most of them were assholes, don't get me wrong, but I still wonder."

"Mr. Wonka probably took care of them," Maureen said. "He took good care of you."

"Because my thing wasn't entirely my fault," Laurie said. "I mean, I admit to the corneal flash burn thing to being partially my fault for not covering my eyes like a moron. But the rest of the kids only ended up in their situations because of their own greed or stupidity. He might treat them differently."

"Maybe," Maureen said. "He'll make sure they get out alright. Though if I know him, he'll make sure they have something to remember the consequences of their greed."

"Yeah…" Laurie said. "I also might have gotten such good care because I'm your daughter."

"You would've gotten that care even if he and I weren't childhood friends," Maureen said. She heard Laurie groan and roll her eyes.

"Are you two really that oblivious!?" Laurie asked.

"Laurie?" Laurie tensed her jaw and sighed.

"You two have been bloody flirting all bloody day and I guess neither of you realized it," Laurie said with a very clearly annoyed tone. "I saw it, Charlie saw it, I wouldn't be surprised if any of the parents saw it, the Oompa Loompas most definitely know because they seem to be magical all-seeing beings…"

"Laurie, Willy and I haven't been flirting," Maureen said, rolling her eyes. They passed a group of Oompa Loompas.

"Hey, guys!" Laurie called out. The Oompa Loompas turned and faced the Traynors, looking clearly confused. "Have you been watching the tour?"

"Yes," one of them replied.

"Have Mr. Wonka and my mother been non-stop flirting?" Laurie asked.

"Oh, definitely," the Ooompa Loompa answered. Laurie motioned to the Oompa Loompas in an 'I-told-you-so' manner. Maureen dropped her jaw and looked from the Oompa Loompas to Laurie. "You two are so oblivious."

"That's what I said!" Laurie told them. "Sorry if I kept you. You can go now if you need to." The Oompa Loompas nodded and Maureen stood there frozen in shock. Now she wasn't sure if she had been flirting or not. Now she was mentally analyzing every single interaction with Willy that day. "Let's go. Your knight in shiny armor awaits." Maureen rolled her eyes and lightly thunked Laurie on the back of the head. As they made the left, they heard loud shouting from the office.

"Wrong, sir, wrong!" she heard Willy shout. "Under Section Thirty-Seven B of the contract signed by him it states quite clearly that all offers shall become null and void if-and you can read it for yourself in this photostatic copy: 'I, the undersigned, shall forfeit all rights, privileges, and licenses herein and herein contained, et cetera, et cetera… fax mentis incendium gloria culpum, et cetera, et cetera... memo bis punitor delicatum!' It's all there, black and white, clear as crystal! You stole Fizzy Lifting Drinks. You bumped into the ceiling which now has to be washed and sterilized, so you get nothing! You lose! Good day, sir!" As Willy ranted, they Traynors could only stand awkwardly outside of the office, frozen in shock.

"Oh my god…" Laurie murmured.

"You're a crook!" Grandpa Joe shouted. "You're a cheat and a swindler! That's what you are. How can you do a thing like this? Build up a little boy's hopes and then smash all his dreams to pieces. You're an inhuman monster!"

"I said good day!" Willy interrupted. The door cracked open and Grandpa Joe came through.

"If Slugworth wants a Gobstopper, he'll get one," she heard him muttered. Charlie placed a hand on his Grandpa's shoulder and turned around, walking back into the office. Grandpa Joe looked up and stared at Maureen, clearly looking disappointed. Laurie stepped into the office to see what Charlie was doing. Maureen peered into the office. She was shocked to see that everything in there as cut in half. Half a painting, half a clock, half a sink, half a desk… Why was everything in half?

Charlie walked up to the desk where Willy was writing and smoking a cigar. "Mr. Wonka?" he said as he put the Gobstopper on Willy's desk. He turned to leave and neared the door when Willy placed his hand over the candy.

"So shines good deed in a weary world…" he said. He sat up and turned around. "Charlie!" Charlie paused and turned around. Willy smiled and said, "My boy… You won! You did it! You did it! I knew you would; I just knew you would." Willy walked up to Charlie and spun him around in a hug. Maureen and Laurie entered the office. "Oh, Charlie, forgive me for putting you through this. Please, forgive me." Willy turned to them and hugged Laurie. "And Laurie! Sweet girl! You've won as well! I never doubted you for a second. I knew your mother would have taught you to have a good head on your shoulders."

"I'm so confused right now," Laurie said. "You're not actually mad at Charlie?"

"Well, I do have to sterilize the ceiling, but it's nothing that hasn't had to be done with almost every test," Willy said with a broad smile. "Come in, Mr. Wilkinson!" The door opened and a man Maureen had never seen entered the room. He wore glasses and had a scar on his face. Laurie immediately dropped her jaw and covered her mouth. "Meet Mr. Wilkinson."

"Pleasure," the man said.

"Slugworth!" Charlie gasped.

"No, no. That's not Slugworth. He works for me," Willy said. "I had to test the two of you. You both passed! You won!"

"Oh…" Laurie said, covering her mouth. "Oh no, I'm an asshole." Maureen arched her brow in confusion. "Um… Mum? I have to tell you something… He told me he was Slugworth and tried to get me to steal an Everlasting Gobstopper. I said no, and I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry."

"That's fine, but you should have told me," Maureen said. Her daughter looked down and bit her lip.

"That wasn't all I said…" she said. Laurie leaned up and whispered into her mother's ear. When Maureen heard the words, she dropped her jaw and stared at the sheepishly looking girl in shock.

"You told him to _WHAT!?_ " Maureen snapped. "Laurie Elizabeth Traynor!"

"I'm sorry!" Laurie said. "You're lucky I didn't punch him in the face or something…"

"Laurie!"

"I didn't though!" Maureen sighed and shook her head. The entire time, Willy and Mr. Wilkinson were laughing. Grandpa Joe and Charlie just looked confused.

"Maureen, relax," Willy told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Mr. Wilkinson and I found it funny more than anything." Laurie immediately turned bright red and let out an embarrassed sounding wail. It was easy to see how mortified she was.

"Wait, what did we win?" Charlie asked.

"The jackpot! The grand and glorious jackpot!" Willy said as he grabbed his hat.

"The chocolate?" Charlie asked.

"The chocolate, yes, the chocolate," Willy said as he grabbed his coat. "But that's just the beginning. We have to get on, we have to get on; we have so much time, and so little to do. Strike that. Reverse it." He grabbed his cane and led the four people to another door. "This way, please. We'll take the Wonkavator."

"Do you just stick your last name in front of everything?" Laurie asked with a smile and a laugh. He shook his head and opened the door to the Wonkavator.

"Step in, Charlie, Laurie, Grandpa Joe, Maureen," Willy said. They all piled into the rather small elevator. Maureen could feel Willy's hand on the small of her back as she entered the elevator. They all sat down. Laurie and Charlie sat on one side while she and Grandpa Joe sat on the other. In the center sat Willy, who happened to be right between Charlie and Maureen. "This is the Great Glass Wonkavator."

"It's an elevator," Grandpa Joe said.

"It's a Wonkavator," Willy corrected. "An elevator can only go up and down, but the Wonkavator can go sideways and slantways and longways and backways…"

"And frontways?" Charlie asked.

"And diagonalways?" Laurie asked.

"And squareways and frontways and any other ways that you can think of," Will said. "It can take you to any room in the whole factory just by pressing one of these buttons. Any of these buttons. Just press a button and ZING! You're off. And up until now, I've pressed them all… except one." He pointed to a red button on the top of the Wonkavator wall. "Go ahead you two."

"Us?" Charlie asked. Willy nodded. Laurie motioned for Charlie to press the button. Charlie stood up and pressed the button. The Wonkavator began to shutter and everyone gripped onto something.

"There it goes," Willy said. "Hold on tight. I'm not exactly sure what's going to happen." Maureen watched as they went shooting upwards. Willy's eyes were fixated on the speedometer. "Faster, faster. If we don't pick up speed, we'll never get through."

"Get through what?" Charlie asked. Willy laughed and pointed upwards. Maureen went wide-eyed at the implication.

"You mean we're going..?" Grandpa Joe asked, pointing upwards.

"Up and out," Willy said. Maureen tensed her jaw.

"William Nigel Wonka," she hissed, enunciating each syllable. "I am going to murder you in your sleep for this."

"But this roof is made of glass," Grandpa Joe said. "It'll shatter into a thousand pieces. We'll be cut to ribbons!"

"Probably," Willy said.

"Your middle name is Nigel?" Laurie asked.

"Priorities, Laurie!" Maureen snapped.

"Hold on, everybody!" Willy said with a smile. "Here it comes!" Suddenly the Wonkavator crashed through the roof. Maureen grabbed onto the nearest thing and squeeze her eyes shut. "Open your eyes, Maureen." The pianist opened her eyes and looked around. They were all safe and they were in the sky.

"Congratulations, Mr. Wonka," Grandpa Joe said. "We did it!"

"Look around," Willy said with a smile. Maureen looked down and realized that she was latching tightly onto Willy's arm. "Maureen, was the use of my middle name really necessary?"

"Considering we might have been sliced up, yes. It was," Maureen said, letting go of Willy's arm. She stood up and looked outside of the window. "Oh wow," she breathed out, looking at the sights.

"Our town looks so pretty from up here," Charlie said.

"Look over here, Charlie," Grandpa Joe said. "I think I see our house."

"Which one is it?" Maureen asked.

"That one," Charlie said, pointing to a small, crumbling shack. She frown and looked down at the little boy.

"You live there?" she asked. Charlie nodded. He ran over to the other side and gasped, "There's my school, Grandpa."

"This is amazing!" Laurie said, smiling at the beautiful town below.

"How did you two like my factory?" Willy asked.

"I think it's the most wonderful place in the world," Charlie said. Laurie nodded in agreement, sporting a large smile.

"I'm very pleased to hear that," Willy said. "Because I'm giving it to you. Both of you." Everyone but Willy dropped their jaws in shock. Maureen couldn't believe it. He was giving the factory to her daughter?

"You're giving them the..?" Grandpa Joe was too in shock to finish the question. Willy nodded and let out a soft smile.

"I can't go on forever, and I don't really want to try," Willy explained. "So, who can I trust to run the factory when I leave and take care of the Oompa Loompas for me? Not a grownup. A grownup would want to do everything his own way, not mine. That's why I decided a long time ago I had to find a child. A very honest, loving child to whom I can tell all my most precious candy making secrets. And I was lucky enough to find two. Two children who can share ideas and come up with amazing things together. You both have amazing imaginations. Just think of what you could create." Laurie smiled and looked at Charlie.

"That watermelon thing _was_ a good idea," Charlie said to Laurie. He turned back to Willy and said, "So that's why you sent out the Golden Tickets."

"That's right," Willy said. "So the factory is yours. You can move in immediately."

"And me?" Grandpa Joe asked.

"Absolutely," Willy said. "You too Maureen." Maureen let out a smile and shook her head. She was still trying to wrap her mind around this.

"What happens to the rest of-"

"The whole family," Willy said. "I want you to bring them all." Charlie grinned and hugged Willy.

"The kitty babies?" Laurie asked. Willy tilted his head in confusion.

"We have five cats," Maureen clarified.

"Of course!" Willy said. "I can make a room just for them. You understand I can't let them wander the factory freely."

"Wouldn't expect any less," Laurie said.

"But don't forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he always wanted," Willy said.

"What happened?" Charlie asked.

"He lived happily ever after," Willy said. Charlie hugged Willy again and this time Laurie joined in. Maureen covered her mouth and smiled. This was like something from a fairy tale. The hug between the chocolatier and the two kids ended and Laurie sat back down.

"Mr. Wonka, have you gotten everything you always wanted yet?" Charlie asked.

"Not quite," Willy said. Maureen could swear he had a faint twinkle in his eye as he said that. She could also swear that he looked right at her for a moment. She heard Laurie groan and saw her roll her eyes beneath the sunglasses.

"Do you realize how painfully obvious you two are being?" Laurie asked. "I mean, I see it. Charlie sees it. Grandpa Joe probably sees it. Just… ugh!"

"What are you talking about, Laurie?" Willy asked. Laurie tensed her jaw and shook her head.

"You know what, if you guys wanna be oblivious then I will let you be oblivious," Laurie said. She turned around and looked out the window. Maureen shook her head and sighed. "So where are we actually going?"

"Don't worry about where we're going for now," Maureen said. "Just enjoy the view."

"Which I can I actually do thanks to Mr. Wonka's Eye Candy," Laurie said with a smile. Everyone in the Wonkavator laughed as they enjoyed viewing the beautiful little town below them. All seemed to be absolutely perfect.


	15. Packing

**Sorry for the late update. If you read my Pirates of the Caribbean fic, then you'll know about all the drama that was happening in my life over the past few months. Also, I had intended for this chapter to be done yesterday, but then I received news that my Aunt Greta had finally passed away from cervical cancer. So I'm dedicating this chapter to her. RIP Aunt Greta.  
**

 **Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"I'm so excited, mum!"

"I know, Laurie. You've only said it at least seventeen times in the past half hour," Maureen said as she continued to pack up her clothing. She was using a separate suitcase for her concert wear. After all, these dresses tended to be her most delicate and expensive articles of clothing. Laurie had already packed up all of her stuff while Maureen was playing for three different recitals. October was a popular month for recitals, after all. Especially for the students graduating in the fall semester. When she came home, she was surprised to see that Laurie had already started to pack up all of the pictures and personal items in the living room. After all, they had been assured by Willy that they didn't need a majority of the furniture in their house. The one large piece of furnishing that was coming with them was the Steinway.

There was no way in hell that Maureen was giving up the Steinway.

"I know! But I'm just so excited!" Laurie squealed. "We get to live in a bloody Chocolate factory and you still get to teach and I get to learn how to _run_ a chocolate factory. I mean, I'm still going to college for something music related, but maybe I can double major in music and business! Like, not music business, but you know what I mean! Right, mum?" Maureen shook her head and chuckled softly to herself.

"I know what you mean, Laurie," Maureen said. "Put a record on. If you haven't already packed up the record player in your excitement that is."

"It's still out," Laurie said. "What do you take me for, mum?" She walked over to the brown wooden record player and looked through the pile of records on the table. Most of them were Vivaldi, Rachmaninoff, Beethoven, Shostakovich, Ravel and the like. However, Maureen did own some copies of records by the Beatles, the Who, David Bowie, and the Rolling Stones. "Hmm... what to play, what to play... here we go!" Laurie took a record off the shelf and placed it on the record player. Within the next minute, Mozart's opera _The Marriage of Figaro_ was playing. Starting off with the now overly familiar overture. Maureen stopped packing and turned to her daughter, an eyebrow arched.

"Seriously?"

"Yep!" Laurie replied with a large smile. "I saw it and I couldn't resist. Plus, it's fitting. You told me it was what you were playing the first time you met Willy Wonka." Maureen shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Can you do me a favor and pack up the music library?" she asked. "There should be some boxes downstairs for them."

"Of course! Pack up quickly though! Mr. Wonka said that he'd be here with the van at ten," Laurie said. "It's like nine forty-five now."

"I know that," Maureen said. "Not my fault I had three recitals in one day."

"It kind of is," Laurie said as she left the room. Maureen sighed and returned to packing up her things. She took her concert black dress out of the closet, still on the hanger, and folded it up as neatly as she possibly could. She gently placed it in the suitcase and smoothed it out to avoid getting wrinkles in it. Most concertwear had to be dry cleaned and that was extremely costly. Granted, it wasn't nearly as costly as her Steinway, but still... Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the doorbell. "I'll get it!" Laurie shouted.

Maureen turned back to her closet and took out a shorter blue and gold dress. She typically used it for less formal recital performances in the summer and spring months. She only folded the dress once and rested it in the suitcase. She heard footsteps coming up the stairs as she went to get her next dress. It was her favorite solo dress that she often wore when she performed a solo recital or a concerto. It was a soft gold made of silk with beading in a floral design near the top. She let out a smile as she looked at the dress.

"You wore it that night I saw you perform with the Surrey Philharmonic."

Maureen nearly jumped at the sound of Willy's voice. She had thought it was Laurie coming upstairs, not him.

"You're early," she said. Willy shrugged and took another step into the room. He was dressed much more casually now than he was during the factory tour. He wore a simple pair of khaki pants and a pale blue button-up shirt that almost matched his eyes.

"Charlie's downstairs helping Laurie pack up your music library," Willy said. "I figured I'd see if you needed help at all."

"I'm fine," Maureen said. "I'm surprised I've gotten so much packed up in half an hour."

"You've only been home half an hour?" Willy asked. Maureen nodded as she folded up the pale gold, silk gown.

"I had three recitals to play for today," Maureen said. "Hence my being so dressed up." She gestured down to her orange, knee-length floral dress. "I figured that at this point changing would be a bit... well... pointless. Wow that sentence was full of redundancy..." She suddenly felt herself begin to get somewhat flustered. She was almost sure that her face felt a bit hotter now than it did a few minutes ago.

"Three recitals?" Willy asked. Maureen nodded as she put the gold gown in the suitcase. In the background, _Act I, No. 1: "Duettino: Cinque, dieci, venti, trenta"_ played softly. Maureen nodded as she went to get her last solowear dress.

"All student recitals. A soprano, a trombonist, and an oboeist," Maureen said. "All three did phenomenally. I swear, music students work harder than most medical students."

"I'd imagine," Willy said. "It's takes amazing dedication to be a music major. The hours you all must have had to put into practice, as well as homework and the like."

"Yeah," Maureen said with a smile. She folded up the dark purple dress and rested it inside her suitcase. "In university, my friends and I would hang out at each others apartments and drink our stress away and listen to rock and roll just to get all the classical music out of our brains. Don't get me wrong, I love classical. You just sick of it when you're doing chord analyses constantly."

"Of course," Willy said with a smile. Maureen closed up the suitcase and looked around her room. "What else do you need to do?"

"Just pack up jewelry and other personal belongs," Maureen said. "I also need to catch the cats, but Laurie can handle that when she finished with the music library."

"Alright," Willy said. He suddenly paused and appeared to be listening more intently. "What's playing right now?"

"Mozart's _Marriage of Figaro,_ " Maureen said. Willy started to chuckle softly. "Laurie picked it, not me."

"Of course she did," he murmured to himself. He ran a hand through his unruly blonde curls and shook his head. "That girl is more intuitive than she probably should be."

"Is that really a bad thing though?" Maureen asked as she walked over to her dresser to pack up her jewelry. She opened the draw and took out various earrings and bracelets and put them in a small cardboard box.

"I don't think so," Willy said. Maureen took out her necklaces and moved them to the small box. There was one necklace in particular that seemed to catch Willy's eye. It was a rather simple locket that Maureen knew she hadn't worn in quite some time. "Is that the locket I got you for your seventeenth birthday?"

"This?" she asked, holding up the locket. Maureen suddenly recognized it and let out soft smile. "I think so, yes. I remember, Jonathan was lvid."

"Was he?" Willy asked, his eyes widened in shock. Maureen nodded and looked at it.

"Yes," Maureen said. "Told me that he didn't want my 'wierd candy-obsessed friend' to outshine him or something... I really should have known back then what an arse he'd turn out to be."

"Hey, you got Laurie out of that bad relationship," Willy said. "Maybe you were meant to be with the wrong person at the right now."

"I suppose so," Maureen said. She looked back at the locket and smiled. "I kind of want to wear it now."

"No one's stopping you. May I?" he asked, taking a step closer and holding out his hand. Maureen blushed slightly as she handed him the simple, gold locket. He stepped behind her and placed the necklace around her neck. She felt the thin metal chain brush against her neck as he fastened the clasp of the necklace. She was also acutely aware of how close Willy was at that moment. She could feel his breath against her neck. When the necklace was on, Willy's hand dropped to her shoulders. "There." Maureen let out a soft smile and turned her head to see him.

As cliche as it sounds, time seemed to pause for a bit when Maureen looked up at him. Her grey eyes met his beautiful blue ones and Maureen found herself unable to look away. "You always did have beautiful eyes..." he murmured.

"Really?" Maureen asked. Willy nodded softly. For a moment, she could swear that his eyes were growing closer. The sounds of footsteps running up the stairs and the wail of a cat brought the two of them back to reality. A flash of ginger fur rushed into the bedroom.

"GET YOUR FURRY BUTT BACK HERE YOU FLUFF BUCKET!" she heard Laurie shouted. "YOU'RE GOING TO LIVE IN A CHOCOLATE AND YOU WILL LIKE IT!" Maureen turned around and swept the ginger cat into her arms. She growled loudly and attempted to escape Maureen's arms.

"Easy Madrigal..." Maureen said as she pressed a kiss to the cat's head. Laurie entered the room, panting and carrying a cat carrier.

"I don't get it," Laurie breathed out. "She normally loves being held."

"You were chasing her around the house with a cat carrier," Maureen said. "She probably thought it was time to go to the V-word." The 'V-word' being veterinarian, obviously. They were careful never to use the word when cat carriers were out. "Did you get the others?"

"The only one I can't find is Sonata," Laurie said. She leaned against the doorframe, trying to catch her breath. "Though that's typical for her."

"Madrigal? Sonata?" Willy asked. "I'm curious about the names of the other three now."

"The others are Cadenza, Symphony, and Aria," Laurie said. "The only one I didn't name was Cadenza." Willy nodded his head in understanding. Maureen walked over to Laurie, who opened up the little metal gate to the cat carrier. Maureen unsympathetically shoved Madrigal into the carrier and shut the gate. Laurie nodded and stood up. "I'll put her with the others. No doubt Sonata is trying to hide more than usual. You can hear Symphony wailing at the top of her lungs. Actually, you can hear all of them but Cadenza wailing. She just kind of gets it by now." She turned and left the room. Maureen could hear her footsteps as she walked down the steps, along with the loud wailings of cats who were clearly not please to be in cat carriers.

"Cats..." Maureen muttered. "I love them, but they have their moments where I want to just wring their necks."

"I can understand that," Willy said. "I'll help Laurie look for Sonata. What does she look like?"

"Shorthair, all white except for a patch of black on her head," Maureen said. "I doubt you'll find her. She's an excellent hider. We don't normally see her unless it's time for food. Not that opening food would help in this situation. She already suspects everyone now." Willy laughed and left the room, shutting the door gently behind him. Maureen looked in the mirror at her dress and gently touched the locket around her neck.

What just happened between the two of them?


	16. Moving In

**Again, life's been hectic lately. But things are calming down a bit now. Though my next update probably won't be until mid-May, after all my finals. Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story. Remember to review, fav, and subscribe!**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

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Maureen wasn't entirely surprised when Willy insisted that he ride with Maureen and Laurie back to the factory from Sutton. They had everything arranged so that Laurie was sitting in the back seat with the cats while Willy sat in the passenger's seat. Charlie was riding with Mr. Wilkinson in the van with the piano and all of the other belongings of the Traynor women. They had all since piled into the car and prepared for the hour long ride from Sutton to Surrey.

Maureen was driving in the darkened streets with the classical station on. Laurie was more than excited to hear the announcer say that they were doing a special night devoted to music of the Renaissance. "Now for a madrigal by Carlo Gesualdo de Venosa, 'Moro, lasso, al mio duolo.'"

"Oh! Gesualdo!" Maureen said with a faint smile. She remembered having to study him in her music history classes at Birmingham. "You know, he killed his first wife when he found her in bed with her lover."

"What?" Willy asked, mildly horrified.

"Yep," Laurie said with a smile. "He killed the lover too. I think I read something about how he went back into the bedroom a second time to make sure they were actually dead."

"Don't forget how the court decided that he didn't commit a crime," Maureen said.

"Then somehow got another woman to marry him," Laurie added.

"He murdered two people and wasn't punished?" Willy asked as the haunting melody of the madrigal filled the car.

"Welcome to 16th century Italy," Maureen said with a laugh. "But he was one of the first composers to actively use chromaticism in his pieces. That technique wasn't popularized again until the 19th century, if I remember correctly. He wasn't Josquin-level important, but he was significant enough to be on my Music History I exams." The madrigal soon ended and another one began to play; one that Maureen also recalled having to listen to in University.

"Arcadelt, Il bianco e dolce cigno," Maureen said. "I wonder if they'll play any Palestrina or Monteverdi..."

"Please let them play Monteverdi, I love his work!" Laurie said. There was a loud wail from the back seat that slowly turned into a low growl. "There, there, Denzie. We'll be at the factory in... uh... in a time. In the future."

"A time in the future, how specific," Willy said with a laugh. "It shouldn't be more than fifteen to twenty minutes." The beautiful madrigal continued on for another minute before fading out. The next piece to play was a French chanson. Maureen assumed it was called Tant que vivray due to the fact that those were the first words of the piece. Early music tended to be titled after the first line of text.

"Can you translate?" Laurie asked. "You know, because this is French and you speak French."

"I can try," Willy said, he turned up the volume of the radio and listened more closely to the music. He spoke translations as he heard the French sung in the almost anthem-like chanson. "While I flourish as a youth, I will serve Love, the powerful God, in deeds, in words, in song, in dance. For some time I have languished, but now I am rejoicing because I have the love of a fair woman. She is allied to me, she is my betrothed. Her heart is mine, mine is hers. Away with sadness, live in joy because love is so good. When I want to honor and praise her, when I want to adorn her name with poetry, when I see her and meet with her often, the envious can only murmur but our love will not be less enduring as long as the wind blows. For in spite of envy, all my life I will love her and sing of her. She is the first, she is the last that I have loved and will love."

"Huh," Maureen said. "I understood a bit of the text, but I didn't get anywhere near what you go. I thought I heard something about loving a woman with a fine body at one point."

"It could have been translated that way," Willy said. "But I don't think it's as poetic."

"True," Maureen said.

"That was 'Tant Que Vivray' by Claudin de Sermisy. Now, we can't have a Renaissance music special without hearing some Palestrina. Here is the famous 'Missa O Magnum Mysterium.'"

"Oh, I love that Mass," Maureen said. "It's not as famous as the Missa Papae Marcelli, but I still love it." There was another loud wail that faded to a growl. It was soon joined by some very pathetic sounding squeaks from Symphony.

"It's okay, kitty babies," Laurie cooed. "We're almost there. We probably won't even hear the end of the Missa O Magnum Mysterium." Maureen shook her head and let out a faint chuckle. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Willy looking at her, smiling.

"I never realized how much I missed seeing you almost everyday," Willy said. Maureen felt her cheeks start to grow a little bit hotter. In the rear view mirror, she could see Laurie smirking and raising her eyebrows suggestively. Maureen rolled her eyes and shook her head. "What?" Willy asked, his expression suddenly turning into one of concern.

"Laurie's just being Laurie," Maureen said. "Don't worry; it's not you I'm rolling my eyes at. I-I... um... I've missed seeing you too. You know, because it's been a long time and life happened... You started an internationally renowned candy empire, after all."

"And you an internationally renowned pianist," Willy replied with a laugh. The next instant, she heard Cadenza let out an extremely loud growl-turned-wail-turned-hiss. "Someone's not happy." Maureen let out a laugh. Through the dim light of her car's headlights, she could see the large chocolate factory in the distance. They couldn't have been more than five minutes away by now. "I have a feeling you're going to love your rooms. Cats included."

"If you designed the cat's room, I know they'll never be bored," Maureen said, turning the steering wheel as she neared the factory. "Just don't test candy on them. I'd rather not have a blueberry for a cat."

"Didn't plan on it," Willy said. He leaned a little closer and pointed to his right. "Go that way. I have a garage behind the factory. It's where Mr. Wilkinson and I park."

"Since when do you drive?" Maureen asked. "What happened to Mr. A-Bike-Is-All-I-Need?"

"I got my license when it became clear that I would need some way to get to meetings that were further away," Willy said. "Otherwise, I don't really drive."

"Not to mention there was that whole 'shut-down-the-factory-and-hide-from-society' phase," Laurie added. Willy turned around and arched an eyebrow. Laurie flushed and looked down. "Sorry. I didn't help. Ignore my existence."

"No, it's fine," Willy said, turning back to the front. "It's just a time in my life I'd rather forget about."

"Understandable," Laurie said. Maureen listened carefully to Willy's directions as she drove down the darkened streets of the town. The only light on the streets besides the headlights of her Ford Classic were the dim street lamps and the pale glow of the moon. She was able to make it to the well-hidden garage behind the factory and drove in. She parked in the nearest open spot. When she turned off the engine, the van with their things entered the garage. The van had barely been turned off when Charlie bounced out.

"Laurie! You're going to love your room! It's so cool!" He shouted.

"You've seen it?" Laurie asked.

"Charlie..." Willy said almost warningly. "I told you not to say anything."

"Sorry, Mr. Wonka," Charlie said sheepishly. "It's just so cool!" Laurie took two of the cat carriers out of the backseat. Charlie, Maureen, and Willy each took one. Maureen figured she should take Madrigal; she was the one that tended to claw at people when in a carrier. Charlie took Symphony while Willy took Cadenza. That left Aria and Sonata with Laurie. They walked towards the back entrance of the factory. Maureen had a feeling that the Oompa Loompas were going to take their stuff up to their rooms later.

"My family moved in a few days ago," Charlie said as they entered the factory. "My room looks like it's made entirely out of chocolate and marshmallows."

"That's so cool!" Laurie said with bright smile. Symphony let out little squeaks as they entered the factory. Maureen could imagine that the kitten was confused with the new scents that filled the air. Candy tended to be fragrant, after all. From a quick glance, it seemed like all the cats were on edge from all the new scents.

"We should probably get the cats settled first," Maureen said. "Just to make sure they don't lash out at anyone. I'm seeing flat ears."

"Looks like we had the same idea," Willy said with a laugh. He pressed a button on one of the walls and the Wonkavator appeared. Maureen arched her eyebrow. "What?" He asked as he stepped into the elevator.

"Are we all going to fit?" Maureen asked.

"I'd rather not walk all the way there," Willy said. "So it's either this or the chocolate river. And given that cat's can't have chocolate..."

"I see your point," Maureen said as she stepped into the elevator. Once Charlie and Laurie got inside, Maureen ended up very close to Willy. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest against her back. She couldn't help but feel her face grow ever so slightly warmer. Willy pressed a new button on the wall that read 'Cat Room.' The elevator zoomed to the left and then up. The cats all wailed unanimously from the sudden motion. "I'm cleaning up cat vomit later; I can feel it," she said with a laugh. Willy laughed as well. She could feel his chuckling against her back.

The elevator zipped to a halt a few minutes later and the doors opened. Laurie rushed out first, followed by Charlie. Willy and Maureen stepped out of the elevator. Willy quickly took the lead and showed them to the cat's new home. It was the second door down from where the Wonkavator stopped. Willy set down the cat carrier and let out a smile as he fished out a keyring from his pocket and easily found the right key. Laurie's jaw was dropped at the sight of the hundreds of keys.

"How?" Laurie asked.

"When you've been here for twenty years, you can find your keys pretty quickly," Willy said as he unlocked the door. He pushed the door open and motioned for the three to enter the room. Maureen picked up Cadenza's cat carrier and entered the room. Her eyes widened at the sight in front of her.

The room itself was full of bright colors. The walls were lined with places the cats could jump onto and rest. There was a long tunnel that circled the top of the room. Various toys were scattered around the floor, ready for the cats to play with. She saw multiple litter boxes in the corner that looked like nothing Maureen had ever seen. It almost looked like they could clean themselves! The rest of the room was full of various pieces of feline furnishings; pillow, activity trees, and even a catnip plant growing from the center of the room. There was even a couch on the wall for any humans entering to spend time with the cats.

"Oh they're gonna love this," Laurie said with a bright smile. Willy shut the door behind him and observed the Traynor's reactions with a smile. Laurie, Maureen, and Charlie all set the carriers on the floor. "Who first?" Laurie asked.

"Cadenza," Maureen said. "The others should follow her reactions. If she clears it, we'll be fine." Laurie nodded and watched as Maureen opened up Cadenza's carrier. The feline stayed in the crate for a few minutes before creeping out slowly and sniffing her surroundings. "Willy, I'll warn you. They may or may not pee outside of the litter box in the next few days. Just because it's a new place and they want to claim it. Cadenza slowly walked around the room. So far it seemed that she was more cautious about the room than anything; she neither liked it nor disliked it. Eventually, Maureen decided it was time to release Sonata.

Sonata apparently just wanted out of the carrier, because the moment Maureen opened it, the shorthair bolted across the room and found the first hiding spot available. She could only see the faint gleam of Sonata's eyes from underneath the sofa. Laurie was sitting on the floor, laughing at Sonata's reaction. "She didn't waste time," she said.

"I guess she felt too exposed for too long," Maureen added. Charlie and Willy were both let out faint chuckles as well. "Let's do the last three all at once. I was mostly just worried about Denzi and Sonata." Laurie nodded and bent down to Madrigal's carrier. Charlie was kneeling next to Symphony's carrier while Maureen prepared herself to open Aria's carrier.

"One..." Willy said. Maureen laughed at the random countdown. "Two... Three... Release the felines!" They opened all three carriers at once and the cats slowly exited the carriers. Well, two of the three. Symphony left the crate and immediately started playing with one of the toys on the ground. Maureen wasn't very worried about how Symphony would adjust anyway. Madrigal and Aria both huddled closely together and slowly explored the room.

"So far so good," Maureen said. "No one's peed yet. No one's growling."

"Why don't we let them adjust?" Willy suggested. "After all, we still have your rooms to see."

"Can we do mine first?" Laurie asked. "Sorry. I'm just really impatient now since Charlie said it was cool."

"Of course," Willy said. They left the cat room, shutting the door quickly behind them to ensure that none of the cats escaped. They walked down the hallway, passing a few rooms. Each room had a label like, Bubblegum room ("That's my mom's room!" Charlie commented), Cotton Candy room, and Lemonade room. They came to a room marked 'Forest Room' and stopped. Laurie's eyes immediately brightened.

"Can I?" Laurie asked. Willy nodded and motioned for Laurie to enter the room. She opened the door and gasped at the sight. Her hand immediately went over her mouth in awe. Maureen could understand why.

The room looked like a forest out of a fairy tale. Sculptures of trees rose from the ground and twisted around the furniture in the room. The chair looked like it was a tree stump and the desk looked as if it was molded from the roots of two trees. A hammock hung between two of the trees in the room. The headboard was made of two tree trunks that seemed to twist around each other. The light in the top of the room almost seemed like sunlight creeping down from the sky and through the trees. In the corner was a shelf that was carved into one of the trees and almost seemed perfect for Laurie's music library. To Maureen's surprise, all the boxes containing Laurie's things had already arrived.

"I love it!" Laurie squealed. She hugged Willy, saying, "Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!" Willy hugged her back, laughing.

"It was no trouble. I had a feeling that this room would suit you," he said. Maureen smiled and nodded. This room was truly perfect for Laurie. "So Maureen, ready to see your room?"

"I'm excited now," Maureen said. "You go ahead and unpack. From what it looks like, your stuff is already here."

"Wanna help Charlie?" Laurie asked. Charlie nodded and walked into the room with Laurie. She gave Maureen and thumbs up before turning to the first box of her stuff. Maureen and Willy walked a few doors down and arrived to a room labeled 'Wintermint Room.'

"Now I'm curious," Maureen said. She touched the silver handle and took a breath. She opened the door and was immediately in awe of what she saw. The room looked like it came from a winter wonderland. The walls were a wintery white with a faint tinge of green. It had a bed in the corner of the room with multiple pale green pillows. In the middle of the room there was enough space for Maureen's Steinway piano. The only reason she knew the space was reserved for the piano was because there was a large square of white time with a note that said 'piano' on it. The shelves and dressers almost seemed like columns of snow and ice molded into the walls. Multiple bookshelves hung on the walls, ready to be filled with books and music. She finally noticed the scent of mint in the air. It was enough to where it was known, but not enough to where it was overpowering. It was perfect. She smiled behind the hands that covered her mouth and laughed. "This is amazing."

"I knew you'd like it," Willy said with a smile. "I mean, I was pretty sure you would. You always loved winter."

"I-I'm speechless," Maureen whispered. "Never in my wildest dreams..."

"My room is across the hall," Willy said. She noticed a faint blush rising onto his face. "I didn't plan it like that, it just sort of ended up that way, but if you need anything don't hesitate to knock."

"I won't," Maureen said. She walked up to her childhood friend and gave him a tight hug. Willy hugged her back, his grip firm and secure. She almost felt a faint sense of safety when he was holding her. "I can imagine the media will talk about this. Two single mothers and their families living with you... Rumors will spread in the tabloids."

"Since when I have cared about the tabloids?" Willy asked. "Besides, it can't be worse than anything they printed when I hid away in here for a few years."

"True," Maureen said. She turned around and looked at the cardboard boxes that sat in the room. "I suppose I should unpack. At least enough to where I can get ready for bed. I'm beat after today. Not to mention I have to get up pretty early tomorrow for LSO rehearsal..."

"You really do have to balance a lot," Willy said. "It's amazing how you handle it all."

"Years of practice," Maureen said with a faint laugh. "You must be exhausted too. Running a chocolate factory and all."

"Years of practice," Willy said with a smile. "Good night. If you need anything-"

"I know," Maureen said. Willy nodded and left the room, closing the door behind him. Maureen smiled as she looked around the room. She couldn't believe this was her life now, but she was certainly glad it was. She had a strong feeling that things were going to change for the better; she just knew it.


	17. November 1971: Stress

**Hey guys. So it's been over a year. I just had a lot of craziness happen with this fic. The first was losing all of the documents associated with this fic, which included my backups and my outlines. So I had to spend a lot of time rewriting that because I had hella. Then there was a person on tumblr who decided to copy this fic word for word, so that didn't do a whole lot to make me want to write this fic for a bit. That blatant copy no longer exists anymore thankfully, but still. It sucks to have your creation stolen from you.**

 **Now here we are a year and a half later. I'm also looking for lots of oneshot ideas because from this point on in the fic, each chapter will be no more than a month apart. So give me ALL the oneshots that you wanna read! I love you all and I'm sorry for the unintentionally long hiatus. I'll try to be better this time around.**

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It had been a month since the Traynors and the Buckets had moved in.

Everyone was getting along splendidly. Charlie and Laurie had quickly become the best of friends. During dinner, the two would bounce ideas back and forth. Sometime they would both agree on the most fantastical ideas. Other times, Laurie would sit there and argue with Charlie on other ideas. Other days still, Charlie would argue with her. Though the arguments were always well intentioned, Willy found that he often had to act as the middle man and diffuse any tensions between the teenager and the preteen. Not that Willy minded, though. Their arguments always felt more like well-meaning debates anyway. He was almost glad to act as their mediator. Nothing but good ideas had come from those debates so far.

Willy Wonka never considered himself to be a cat person, but over these past six weeks he found himself going to the cat room more and more often. The furry felines were growing on him, slowly but surely. Laurie seemed to have to point it out every time she went to visit the cats. In particular, the one year old Siamese, Symphony, had warmed up to and bonded with Willy. The moment he entered that room, little Symphony was running up to him, letting out her characteristic high-pitched squeaks and rubbing her head on his legs. Of course, anyone who happened to be holding Symphony's brush instantaneously became her favorite person.

The Buckets had been nothing but warm and kind of Willy since they'd arrived to the factory. The Grandparents Bucket and Sowle had finally been able to get up and walk around. The Grandmas Josephine and Georgina had taken to cooking large meals with Mrs. Bucket and practically stuffing the residents of the Chocolate factory with all manner of savory foods. Of course, the only problem was that Maureen was very rarely home for those dinners.

Willy Wonka was not the only one in the factory worried about Maureen. Everyone, even the Oompa Loompas, had very rarely seen Maureen since she'd moved it. She was constantly out of the factory with Symphony performances, her teaching schedule, and other engagements. It was a miracle whenever she ended up home before eleven o'clock at night. Whenever she _was_ in the factory, she was either practicing in her room or sleeping. Over the last month, Willy could count on one hand how much she'd even spoken to him or even how often she took any time for herself to just relax. The toll was weighing heavily on Laurie. She didn't even have to verbally express her feelings for Willy to see that.

Willy was walking down the hallway of the bedroom wing. It was incredibly early, about six in the morning, but Willy had always been a very early riser. In his hands was a tray with two plates of eggs, sausage, and toast. Maureen was always out of the factory by seven in the morning. According to the Oompa Loompas, she'd been leaving her breakfast untouched all month. So he was going to make damn sure that she still took care of herself and actually ate something for breakfast. He already heard the sound of the piano inside the bedroom, even at this hour. There was no way Maureen was getting a full eight hours of sleep. She had to only be getting about six at the most. He shifted the tray to his left hand, balancing it almost precariously, and knocked on the door with his right. The flurry of scales stopped and he heard movement inside the room. The door opened and Maureen let out a tired smile.

"Good morning," she said, her voice still gravelly from the early hour. Willy's heart sank at the state of her appearance. She didn't look terrible, she never could. But the dark circles under her eyes made him worried. She wasn't getting enough rest; nowhere near enough. No one getting enough sleep could have bags that dark and heavy under their eyes.

"Morning," Willy said, shifting the tray again so that he could hold it with both hands. "The Oompa Loompas tell me you haven't been eating breakfast."

"I just, well, time," Maureen said. "So much to do, no time to do it, so… If I'm going to cut out any meal to make time for music, breakfast is the obvious choice."

"Not this morning it isn't," Willy said. "I'm not leaving until you've eaten something." Maureen slumped forward and shook her head. Before she could get out any sort of protest, Willy promptly inserted himself into the doorway. He arched an eyebrow at her. She let out a huff and stepped aside, letting him into the wintery bedroom. He took the tray over to her unmade bed and sat down. Maureen took a seat on the other side of the tray. She looked down at the plate of eggs and sighed. She picked up her fork and took a small bite of the eggs.

"Thanks," she said.

"You're my dearest friend," Willy said. Maureen let out a soft smile and continued to eat small bites of her eggs. Willy looked down at his own plate and ate slowly, finding himself delving deep into his own thoughts.

The word 'friend' still stung him after all these years. He knew exactly why; he'd known ever since he had that moment of epiphany during the tour outside of the Television Room. He knew he'd been in love with her from when he was fifteen until they'd lost contact after she got married. He was entirely sure that he'd moved on from his feelings for her. He had to be, especially when she called him in 1955 squealing about how Jonathan had finally proposed to her. Yet the last thing he'd ever wanted was to lose her friendship, so he kept everything buried deep, deep inside. Yet in that moment when he saw her again, still looking just as beautiful with age as she did when they were sixteen… In that moment when he tucked those strands of her ash-blonde hair into that jumpsuit and looked into those cloudy grey eyes, he knew that he'd never truly moved on. He knew that he'd never once stopped loving her. He'd realized that he was still in love with Maureen Traynor, even after all of these years.

Of course, right now was definitely not the time to tell her this. Not while she was in this kind of state. Not when she was working herself ragged every day, including Sundays. Not when he had no idea or indication that she had any kind of feelings for him. Not when she didn't need the added stress of figuring out her feelings for him. No, what Maureen needed right now was a friend. A true friend that would be there for her and help her take care of her daughter. Not a lover. Just a friend.

Maureen sighed and stared at the toast and sausage. "A lot's changed, hasn't it?" she suddenly asked.

"I know," Willy said with a small smile. "You think we'd be used to each other again by now."

"I don't know," Maureen said. "I don't feel like we've seen each other all that much since I moved in."

"We haven't," Willy said, setting down his plate. He sighed and rested his hand on top of Maureen's. The lightness he felt in his chest still surprised him every time he touched her. "We're all worried about you."

"I'm fine," Maureen said almost dismissively. "Octobers and Novembers are hectic months for me. Lots of student recitals, lots of concerts, lots of rehearsals, preparations for final exams… It's nothing I haven't dealt with before. Trust me, things will calm down. I just happened to move in during the single busiest month of the year for me."

"You're sure?" Willy asked. Maureen nodded and let out an almost weak smile, as if she were trying to convince herself.

"Positive," Maureen said. "Just ask Laurie. She knows what it's like this time of year. Our Christmas almost always starts in October." She looked at the clock at widened her eyes. "I should get dressed. I have a really early rehearsal with a guest artist because seven thirty was the only time she could come-"

"I understand," Willy said, cutting her off. Maureen took the slices of toast and ate them as quickly as she possibly could. He took the tray and nodded at Maureen once before leaving the room. He shut the door gently behind him and sighed. For her sake, he prayed that things would calm down for her by the end of the month. It killed him to see her looking so exhausted constantly. He doubted even candy would do anything for her at this point.

* * *

Laurie laughed as Aria fell off the couch and landed on her feet, looking around the room as if she'd been stunned. Out of nowhere, Symphony leapt at the couch, trying to grasp onto the long string that Laurie was currently holding in her hand. The Beatles album _Abbey Road_ was playing on the record player in the room; the record player that was sitting on the table Sonata was currently hiding underneath. The only part of the cat that Laurie could see were her eyes. On the other end of the room, Charlie was sitting on the floor doing his homework. Madrigal was sleeping soundly in his lap, not caring that she was essentially acting as a pseudo-desk for the twelve-year-old boy. Cadenza was laying down in one of the numerous cat beds, sleeping soundly.

Laurie swished the rope again and both Symphony and Aria dove after it. "Calm down psychos. It's just a string," she said with a chuckle. Charlie laughed and shook his head at the sight of the cats.

"I've never had a cat before," he said. "I've never had a pet period."

"It's great, isn't it?" Laurie asked. "A cat that you can snuggle with after a long hard day at school?"

"Yeah," Charlie said, looking down at his homework. He grimaced and frowned. "I really hate maths."

"Same," Laurie said. "That's why I'm putting it off."

"You really shouldn't do that, you know." Laurie looked up and saw Willy suddenly standing in the room. She didn't even hear the door open or close. Then again, she was distracted by cats and the Beatles… her attention span wasn't the greatest.

"I know, but, when in music will I need to know how to calculate the area of a triangle?" Laurie asked.

"True," Willy said, sitting down on the bright yellow couch. "But that doesn't mean there's not a value in learning about it. Was the piano ever going to help me make chocolate?" Laurie sighed in defeat, knowing that, as usual, Willy had a point. Stupid omnipotent chocolatier… "I actually got your mother to eat breakfast this morning."

"Her eating breakfast in November?" Laurie asked. That was a shocker. She never ate breakfast in November. She always skipped breakfast to practice. "You really are a miracle worker." She flicked the string again and Symphony jumped up to try and catch it. Of course, that was the moment the one-year-old feline decided to notice that Willy was there. She squeaked her little squeaks and jumped up onto Willy's lap, rubbing her head in the palm of his hand. He let out a low chuckle and started scratching the cat's head.

"I do what I can," Willy said. Laurie looked up at the chocolatier. He wasn't smiling his usual smile. His face was almost solemn, as if he were thinking through a lot of different things at once. He was worried about her mom; that much was obvious. "I wish I could do more for her."

"I've tried for years, Mr. Wonka," Laurie said. "You just have to wait out the busy season. Does it suck? Yes. Mom's a workaholic and a perfectionist, which is really a terrible combo. No one will ever change that about her. But there's not really anything you can do besides make sure she eats and sleeps. And Charlie, you mom and grandmas have been doing a really good job with the eating thing."

"Of course they are," Charlie said with a big smile and a laugh. "We don't have to eat cabbage soup every day anymore." Laurie looked down at Aria and swung the string around once more. This busy season of music is why she didn't want to go into music performance. She loved playing her flute more than anything in this world, but that kind of stress was just something she didn't want to deal with.

"What's wrong Laurie?" Willy suddenly asked. Laurie looked up at him and forced a smile. "No, no. Don't do that. I get enough of that fake smiling nonsense from your mom. What's on your mind?"

"You know you can tell us anything," Charlie said. Laurie bit her lower lip, unsure of whether or not she wanted to bring the internal debate she'd been having since before the Golden Ticket contest to light.

"I don't know if I want to stay in the Youth Orchestra," Laurie finally said after many minutes. "I love playing the flute, don't get me wrong, but I don't think I really love performing anymore. And I'm pretty sure my passion is for music history, not performance."

"Have you talked to your mom about this?" Willy asked. Laurie shook her head.

"Not really," Laurie admitted. "She knows I'm more interested in history. She doesn't know that I'm considering quitting the NYO. I haven't even talked to the Maestro about it yet, but I think he's noticed that I just… I don't love performing anymore." Laurie felt her eyes start to sting and she wiped her eyes, drying the tears that were starting to form. "I don't know. Maybe this is just a rough patch I need to get through."

"Do you really think that?" Charlie asked. "Or are you just trying to convince yourself to save people's feelings?" Laurie looked down and closed her eyes, feeling the tears start to roll down her face.

"I don't know," Laurie said. "But I at least have to wait it out until the winter break. Because that's the soonest I can leave." She felt arms wrap around her and knew that Mr. Wonka had to be hugging her.

"It sounds like you've already made your decision," Willy said softly. Laurie nodded. It was strange; it was as if suddenly she felt like there was no kind of pressure on her. Like a weight had been lifted from her chest. "Do you feel any better?"

"I actually do," Laurie said. "Thanks. Both of you."

"Any time," Charlie said. "I'd hug you, but cat." Laurie let out a laugh and looked at the still-fast-asleep Madrigal in Charlie's lap.

"Hey, if you've been that blessed, then I wouldn't move either," Laurie said. Willy stood up and smirked at the two kids.

"Now, you two ready to get to work on those recipes?" Willy asked. Laurie let out an earnest smile and nodded. "Sorry Charlie. You may have been blessed by the feline gods, but even those blessings must end." Charlie let out a huff and hoisted Madrigal out of his lap and onto the floor. The cat out a mewl and a growl, but ultimately fell back to sleep a moment later. Laurie dropped the string and watched as Symphony went insane and wrapped herself all around the string. She rolled her eyes at the hyperactive cat and stood up. At least this kind of factory-training work was work she enjoyed. It definitely beat maths by a long shot.


End file.
